Since April 15th, when clashes between the regular army and paramilitaries began in Khartoum, more than 30,000 people have already crossed the border into Upper Nile State in northeastern South Sudan. They are mostly South Sudanese, and the flow is intensifying with arrivals amounting to 3,500 people a day, according to the UN. Yet South Sudan is already in the grip of a humanitarian crisis.
Peter Van der Auweraert, the acting UN Humanitarian Coordinator in South Sudan, visited with South Sudan’s Minister of Humanitarian Affairs in the town of Renk, Upper Nile State, on Tuesday, May 2nd.
The distress and exhaustion of the people who made the journey from Khartoum touched the UN official. Upon arrival at the border, people are particularly vulnerable, and the situation is somewhat chaotic, given that the majority of arrivals are South Sudanese with specific destinations in mind such as Wau, Malakal, and Juba where they have family. However, the challenge lies in how to get there.