JUBA, OCTOBER 20, 2023 (SUDANS POST) – More than 300,000 people have been registered as refugees in South Sudan after fleeing the conflict in Sudan, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said.
“Of these people, 89 percent were South Sudanese returning to a country already hosting over 300,000 refugees and 2.3 million internally displace persons with limited livelihood opportunities,” OCHA said in a statement seen by Sudans Post on Thursday.
It said as of 13 October, about 312,958 people have crossed into South Sudan. Most were returning citizens but among them were Sudanese refugees.
“As of 13 October 312,958, people have been recorded crossing to South Sudan from Sudan since April, with Joda or Renk being main PoE,” it said.
It said among those arriving include children, elderly and women.
“Overall, 49.6 percent of the new arrivals are female, 49 percent are below the age of 18 and 3.5 percent are over 60. This influx forces humanitarian partners to make difficult choices about how to address growing humanitarian needs with limited resources.”
It said some 147,114 people have been facilitated to move away from the border entry points.
The conflict which broke out in April in Khartoum between Sudan’s military and powerful paramilitary group has killed over 9,000 people and displaced millions, according to the UN.
According to the U.N. migration agency, more than 4.5 million people were displaced inside Sudan, while over 1.2 million others sought refuge in the neighboring countries.
The fighting also left 25 million people-more than half of the country’s population in need of humanitarian aid.
