Khartoum – As the world marks the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction on October 13, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the U.S Agency for International Development’s (USAID’s) Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance announce the launch of a new project to reduce the risk of disasters and the adverse impact of climate change in Sudan.

Sudan has one of the world’s largest populations of internally displaced people, more than three million.

Every year tens of thousands of people in Sudan are displaced by civil conflict, disasters and climatic events, including cyclical droughts, land degradation, desertification, flooding and disease outbreaks. These hazardous events claim many lives and erode hard-won development gains, potentially undermining Sudan’s fragile peace process.

Over the last five years, the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance in Sudan has significantly increased from 5.8 million people in 2016 to 13.4 million in 2021.

“The funding from USAID will provide technical and capacity-building support to the Government of Sudan and local communities in reducing the risks that disasters pose to those vulnerable communities most likely to be affected when disaster strikes," said Catherine Northing, IOM Chief of Mission in Sudan.

“The links between disaster, conflicts and population movements highlight the imperative of including disaster risk reduction in humanitarian, development and peace-building initiatives. IOM reaffirms its commitment to the government and all stakeholders to work collaboratively to enhance disaster risk reduction and build resilience in Sudan,” she added.

The $10 million project funded by USAID will help reduce disaster risks and impacts in Sudan through strengthening national response and preparedness capacities and improving access to timely and effective life-saving assistance.

“USAID recognizes the important link between funding disaster risk reduction and reducing humanitarian needs and the risk of conflict over scarce natural resources. Therefore, we are supporting this important disaster risk reduction effort in Sudan,” said USAID Mission Director for Sudan Mervyn Farroe.

IOM will implement the new project for a period of 24 months from 2021 to 2023, targeting the disaster-prone states of Khartoum, West Darfur, North Darfur, South Darfur, North Kordofan, Kassala, Gadaref, and Blue Nile.

The project will support nearly 25,000 disaster-affected households with timely and effective emergency assistance, establish five hubs for pre-positioning emergency supplies, conduct trainings to support capacity building of key stakeholders on the management of humanitarian relief supplies and facilities, and support local communities to define and implement community-based disaster risk reduction solutions.

Working closely with governmental partners at the national and sub-national levels, IOM’s disaster risk reduction (DRR) activities support initiatives to prevent and prepare for disasters and related population movements, provide disaster assistance and protection where displacement cannot be avoided, and contribute to post-disaster recovery by promoting durable solutions to displacement and strengthening resilience to future and existing risk.

IOM’s global work on DRR contributes to States’ efforts to implement the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, which along with the Paris Agreement contains vital targets that contribute towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

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For more information, please contact Lisa George, Communications and Media Officer, IOM Sudan. Email: IOMSudanmedia@iom.int