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Current Requirements (US$)$882 million
Analysis of context, crisis and needs
South Sudan's displacement crisis remains one of Africa’s most significant in recent years, with 2.3 million refugees hosted in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda and 2.2 million internally displaced. Most South Sudanese refugees have been in asylum for at least a decade. The roots of this crisis are deep-seated, aggravated by a long, brutal civil war, and compounded by climate change and food insecurity. A four-year streak of flooding has decimated homes and livelihoods, exacerbated food shortages and weakened the economy.
The combined number of South Sudanese returnees from 2021-22 was 525,360. However, the pace of returns surged in 2023 as a result of the ongoing crisis in Sudan. As of 30 September, 334,317 refugees returned prematurely to South Sudan, with 62,393 returns in September 2023 alone. If the conflict in Sudan continues unabated, these high trends may continue in 2024. These returns were not predicted and have been hasty. People arriving are confronted by the dire situation in South Sudan, which already has huge humanitarian and development challenges. Over three-quarters of the population in South Sudan is deemed to need humanitarian aid, and parts of the country still face insecurity and climate shocks such as floods. In 2021, only 1,015 South Sudanese were admitted to third countries such as Canada, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States through resettlement and private sponsorship pathways. In 2022, resettlement decreased to just 994 individuals, representing less than one per cent of 114,242 admissions reported globally by resettlement States.
White Nile, Sudan
Rainy season adds additional pressure on services in camps, challenges movements by residents and responding partners, and contributes to heightened susceptibility of vector borne disease outbreaks.
UNHCR/Isadora C. S. ZoneThe prolonged displacement of South Sudanese across the region requires immense humanitarian assistance and support for host countries, which will continue into 2024. In the DRC, South Sudanese refugees are concentrated in the northern regions, notably Ituri and Haut-Uele, and many face protection risks due to ongoing insecurity, including gender-based violence (GBV) and have limited access to education and healthcare. In Ethiopia, South Sudanese refugees reside mainly in the Gambella region, while limited numbers are also hosted in the Benishangul Gumuz region. Despite government support, many services, including education, rely on humanitarian funds. The two refugee camps in Tongo and Gure Shambola were closed in February 2022 due to insecurity, resulting in the relocation of refugees to three camps in the Benishangul Gumiz region, which has put enormous pressure on services, including WASH, within the camp. In addition, since September 2023, some 6,000 South Sudanese refugees arrived in the Gambella region, due to the conflict in Pochalla in South Sudan with numbers expected to reach 8,000 by December 2023.
Integration efforts in the region aim to improve livelihoods but remain a work in progress as the countries of asylum face their own development and security challenges. Food security is of particular concern, also aggravated by reduced food ration across the region in 2023, contributing to increased malnutrition, especially among children. In Kenya, integration into national systems and access to services such as healthcare and education has progressed, particularly within the framework of the integrated socio-economic development plans in Garissa and Turkana counties and ongoing developments on the Government of Kenya’s Shirika Plan, but challenges remain for the full inclusion of refugees in national social protection, education and livelihoods programmes. Further, increased new arrivals in 2022 and 2023 have strained existing services, impacting long-term solutions. In Uganda, the Government continues to implement progressive refugee policies, allowing refugees access to land and basic services, but the impact is reduced as a result of inadequate resources. In Sudan, after having generously hosted refugees for many years, the country faces its own crisis in which refugees are caught up in the war, with some having been killed and others having to return prematurely to their country of origin to avoid the conflict or relocating to the already overcrowded camps in White Nile State.
Um Sangour camp, Sudan
reza Bayak Gatkoy is a refugee from South Sudan who has been living in Um Sangour camp for years. Treza lost her child due to poliomyelitis. UNHCR and the World Health Organization (WHO) are warning of the worsening health situation as a result of the Sudan crisis. Health facilities across Sudan are struggling to cope due to shortages of staff, lifesaving medicine and critical equipment, exacerbating current outbreaks and causing unnecessary deaths.
UNHCR/Ala KheirIn 2024, it is anticipated that more than 500,000 South Sudanese (registered refugees, migrants and others) in Sudan may return to South Sudan, with the majority coming back prematurely from Sudan. UNHCR has conservatively estimated that more than 250,000 South Sudanese refugees will have resettlement needs in 2024, while additional complementary pathways for admission to third countries will continue to have strategic importance in terms of durable solutions and sharing international responsibility for refugee protection. Without such opportunities, South Sudanese refugees will continue to require access to humanitarian assistance, including protection, education, healthcare, clean water, and sanitation, as well as long-term solutions promoting economic opportunities.
The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the East African Community (EAC) are the two main Regional Economic Communities of Africa with which partners will continue to pursue efforts to integrate refugees into national systems and explore regional solutions within the scope of, including promoting local solutions (e.g., the Shirika Plan in Kenya) for protracted displacement of South Sudanese.
While limited financial resources for humanitarian programmes remain the largest impediment to the response, other challenges persist. In 2024, insecurity may be a concern in the run-up to South Sudan’s first elections since independence. Political instability and conflict in the DRC stemming from the upcoming December 2023 elections could also hinder humanitarian programming. If the conflict in Sudan continues, it will have broader implications for regional cooperation, security, and solutions for refugee populations living in protracted situations.
Turkana, Kenya
Sabina works as a Community Health Volunteer in Kalobeyei settlement where she attends to members from both the refugee and host communities on various healthcare needs.
UNHCR/Charity NzomoStrategic objectives and sectoral priorities
In 2024, the South Sudan RRP requires US$ 1.5 Billion for its partners to assist 4.7 million refugees and host community members.
The five core strategic objectives for South Sudanese refugees in 2024 include, which will also be applied across the sectoral response:
- Maintaining asylum space and enhancing protection and the realization of the rights of the refugees and asylum-seekers
- Providing quality, efficient and timely protection and lifesaving multisectoral assistance to refugees, asylum-seekers and host communities, including prevention and response to GBV and protection against sexual exploitation and abuse, child protection, birth registration, and enhancing Accountability to Affected People
- Promoting the inclusion of the refugees and asylum-seekers into national systems including for child protection, legal and physical protection, social protection, education, health, and livelihoods and resilience through strategic engagement with governments, the private sector, regional bodies and development actors
- Enhancing sustainable and durable solutions for refugees and asylum-seekers including opportunities for resettlement and complementary pathways for admission to third countries
- Advocating for measures allowing refugees to exercise greater self-reliance and resilience, including economic mobility, and more international support to the South Sudan situation, leveraging pledges which will be made at the 2023 Global Refugee Forum
The South Sudanese refugee response plan prioritizes cross-cutting efforts to enhance protection from sexual exploitation and abuse, and accountability to affected populations, ensuring the safety, rights and dignity of the refugees. In partnership, localization will be a guiding principle with national NGOs, local authorities, and local communities, including refugees. The response is also committed to climate shock mitigation across the response.
It is incumbent upon host countries, humanitarian organizations, development partners and the private sector to rally together in coordinated efforts to meet the immediate needs of refugees and contribute to lasting solutions for refugees from South Sudan.