APA-Ndjamena (Chad) The Chadian government and the UNHCR office in Chad are appealing to partners for help to rehabilitate over 100 people fleeing the unrest in neighbouring Sudan.
The ongoing war in Sudan is having a serious impact on Chad.
Since the outbreak of hostilities between the regular army loyal to General Abdel-Fattah Al Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces led by General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, thousands of Sudanese have fled to neighbouring countries.
In Chad, according to the United Nations, more than 150,000 Sudanese have taken refuge in the east, particularly in the provinces of Ouaddaï, Sila and Wadi-Fira.
They are being assisted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the National Commission for the Reception and Reintegration of Refugees (CNARR), the Red Cross and other non-governmental organisations.
The country is facing a major humanitarian crisis.
UN agencies estimate that up to 300,000 people will be forced to flee to Chad in the next three months.
On 17 June, the President of the transitional government, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, visited the country to see for himself the scale of the crisis.
He spent two days in Adré, a town with a large number of Sudanese refugees.
The east of the country is already reeling from food shortages and lack of non-food items since the closure of the borders with Sudan.
“We will continue to provide humanitarian assistance at the border and once the refugees have been resettled,” said Laura Lo Castro, UNHCR representative in Chad.
To further scale up its operations, UNHCR needs $214 million to provide vital assistance to forcibly displaced people in Chad, including $72 million for the emergency response to refugees fleeing the conflict in Sudan.
Unfortunately, only 16% of UNHCR’s needs for Chad are currently funded, the UNHCR said.
Faced with this situation, the Chadian government and the UNHCR are launching an urgent appeal to technical and financial partners for emergency assistance for these refugees.
“It is more than urgent that an international conference or round table be organised to help Chad deal with this crisis, otherwise it will not honour its political commitments in the context of the current transition,” said interim Prime Minister Saleh Kebzabo during a meeting with diplomats and NGO representatives.
At a press conference on 20 June, the Minister of Public Health, Dr Abdelmadjid Abderrahim, said the humanitarian situation was critical.
“People who have fled the fighting in Sudan are living in a precarious situation. This crisis calls for the international community to face up to its responsibilities. It will weaken not only the health system, but also the economic and social fabric and even the security situation,” said the minister.
The Ministry of Health has already recorded 14 deaths and 916 injuries.
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