For many years Ockenden has been working
with internally displaced people (IDPs) in eastern Sudan and in and around
the capital Khartoum. We have often sought to convince donors that many
of Sudan's five to six million IDPs live in appalling conditions and require
assistance.
Many IDPs in Khartoum live in worse
conditions than refugees in other countries. Indeed UN Special Representative
to Sudan, Jan Pronk, recently said that Khartoum based IDPs are worse off
than those in Darfur.
A recent report by ICCO provided information on the two million or so IDPs in Khartoum, mainly from the conflict areas of the south and Darfur. Following last years 'historic' Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the government and south rebel forces, many have been expected to return. However, for a variety of reasons, this may not be happening at the rate some anticipated. The ICCO report calls on donors to recognise this fact and provide support to those working to provide an acceptable standard of living for Sudanese no matter where they live.
Ockenden has recently published a research paper looking at returning populations from inside and outside Sudan to parts of western Equatoria. We are currently working with IDP communities in the north to try to gain a better understanding of what factors will encourage and enable people to return 'home', a place where many younger people may never have been.
Graham Wood, head of policy at Ockenden International, said, "Ockenden International has long advocated greater international, especially donor, support to IDPs. The situation in Khartoum and eastern Sudan has been a major concern for two decades. The peace agreement requires either that people are able to return to their or their family's home or that suitable conditions exist in the north for proper settlement and access to services."
"In many ways this issues will determine the ultimate likelihood of sustained peace in Sudan," concluded Graham Wood in a recent discussion on the Sudan peace agreement.