Oxfam using canoes to prevent people facing famine walking days through water to reach food – South Sudan

 March 20th, 2017

• Agency calls for urgent action for people in need ahead of rainy season

People facing famine in South Sudan are forced to walk through water for days in order to reach food and with the rainy season about to begin, it is a race against time to save lives, Oxfam warns.

The agency is urging members of the public to donate to its hunger crisis appeal to support people in desperate need of food, including those in South Sudan.

With support from Irish Aid, Oxfam is using canoes and employing canoe operators to make sure vulnerable people can access food distributions and medical care without having to endure long journeys which risk their safety. In Nyal in Panyijar County, Unity State, Oxfam has helped almost 40,000 of the most vulnerable people living there access food in the past year alone. 

The annual rainy season, which starts in April/May, will cause flooding which means roads and airstrips will become impassable – making things even more difficult for isolated communities and the aid agencies trying to reach them.

Colm Byrne, Oxfam Ireland’s Humanitarian Manager, said: “The people sheltering in areas like Nyal are among the most desperate caught up in this devastating crisis – and the flooding caused by the rainy season will leave them even more at risk.

“After being forced to flee their homes in fear for their lives, they are now forced to travel on foot, sometimes walking through water – hungry and exhausted – for two or three days, to access the food they can’t live without. 

“Through Irish Aid funds, the Irish people have helped us provide canoes and employ local people to operate them so that we can make sure people do not have to choose between safety and life-saving aid. Instead they can access food distributions and medical care without trekking days to do so and are kept safe from attack.”

In South Sudan, urgent action is required to support 4.9 million people in desperate need of food and over 1.8 million displaced by fighting. Today, the Irish Government announced new funding of €11m to assist people affected by famine, drought and conflict in the Horn of Africa, with specific focus on South Sudan (as well as Sudan and Somalia).

Oxfam is distributing food to over 415,000 people in South Sudan as well as providing over 140,000 people with clean water and sanitation. 

Byrne continued: “Ultimately what the people of South Sudan need is an end to the conflict. Until then, we will continue to provide humanitarian aid and longer-term assistance – but we must be given support and safe access to communities in need. Hunger and impending rains present a deadly combination and we urgently need funds to reach more people before it’s too late. Lives depend on it.”

Oxfam is also helping people facing starvation in East Africa, Nigeria and Yemen. The agency is already helping over one million people in Yemen, over 300,000 in Nigeria, 255,000 people in the Southern Somali region of Ethiopia and has begun a response to the drought in Somalia with immediate plans to reach a minimum of 10,000 people with clean water, sanitation and cash assistance for food. 

People can support Oxfam Ireland’s Hunger Crisis Appeal at: https://www.oxfamireland.org/hunger

ENDS

CONTACT: Oxfam spokespeople are available for interview, including Colm Byrne, Oxfam Ireland’s Humanitarian Manager, who recently travelled to Niger and has previously worked in South Sudan.

To arrange an interview or for more information, please contact:

Alice Dawson on +353 (0) 83 198 1869 / alice.dawson@oxfamireland.org

Phillip Graham on 07841 102535 / phillip.graham@oxfamireland.org

SUGGESTED PHOTO CAPTIONS:

001 and 002: In Nyal, Panyijar County, South Sudan, Oxfam is using canoes to make sure vulnerable people who could not make it by themselves can access food distributions and medical care. Photo: Bruno Bierrenback Feder/Oxfam

Notes to the Editor:

WHAT OXFAM IS DOING IN SOUTH SUDAN

• Providing water and sanitation to prevent cholera and diarrhoea
• Working to position supplies ahead of the rainy season which makes it even more difficult for people to access aid
• Providing canoes and travel vouchers for people to reach food distributions, as well as employing canoe operators
•  Providing emergency food distributions and working with people to produce their own food and other income
• Helping people to claim their rights, flee violence, find safety and access aid
• So far we have helped over 600,000 people across the country and almost 40,000 of the most vulnerable in Panyijar County, Unity State, to where many people have fled from famine-hit areas

WHAT OXFAM IS DOING IN NIGERIA

• Providing people with emergency food support, cash and vouchers
• Providing clean water and better sanitation, including showers and toilets
• Distributing food and cooking equipment, and kits to help people avoid disease
• We have helped some 300,000 in northeast Nigeria’s Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states since May 2014. We aim to help up to 500,000 this year

WHAT OXFAM IS DOING IN YEMEN

• We have reached more than a million people since July 2015 with clean water, hygiene kits and other essentials
• Given cash to more 205,000 people so families can buy food or livestock
• 35,000 have taken part in our cash-for-work programs

WHAT OXFAM IS DOING IN SOMALIA

• Launching a humanitarian response in Somaliland, with aim of reaching at least 10,000 people with clean water, sanitation and cash assistance for food
• As the drought worsens in the next few months, we hope to secure enough funding to expand our response across the region