While not part of a CRWRC Ministry Team, Sudan has been a CRWRC relief project site since 2004. For most of the 20th century, Sudan has been embroiled in civil wars and rebel uprisings. This has resulted in the deaths of more than 2 million people and the displacement of over 4 million people from their homes. CRWRC has been responding as part of a multi-agency effort to provide emergency assistance to those living in refugee camps, and to those attempting to rebuild their lives after returning to their homes.
Relief Projects
Darfur: Offering Relief in the Midst of a Conflict Crisis
The crisis in Darfur continues and so does the humanitarian assistance provided by CRWRC and its partner agencies. For most of the 20th century, Sudan has been embroiled in civil wars and rebel uprisings. This has resulted in the death of more than 2 million people and the displacement of over 4 million people from their homes.
CRWRC has been responding as part of a multi-agency effort to provide emergency assistance to those living in refugee camps and those attempting to rebuild their lives after returning to their homes.
Sudan has been a CRWRC relief project site since 2004. The purpose of the project continues to be the support and strengthening of the nutritional standards of an estimated 90,000 conflict affected individuals. In addition, the project encompasses health care, food security, food aid, and activities that re-establish individuals’ means of making an income.
CRWRC is partnering with five other organizations to address the humanitarian disaster in Darfur, Sudan. Those organizations include, World Relief, World Concern, Food for the Hungry, MAP International, and North West Medical Teams International. Support is focused on the most vulnerable families in three districts of Western Darfur.
“Nutrition is the heart and core of our intervention” says Ken Little, CRWRC Senior Relief Program Manager. This vision statement grows out of a survey conducted by two consultants, Merry Fitzpatrick of World Concern and G.P. Sevenhuysen of CFGB. At their advice, CRWRC expanded and enhanced nutrition coverage and activities to better care for children and pregnant/lactating mothers. Women and children are especially vulnerable in Darfur; and according to UNICEF, their health is key to addressing the underlying causes of malnutrition.
In order to address malnutrition, CRWRC established women’s health centres in strategic locations throughout Darfur. This way women can walk to centres where they receive health education and a corn-soya-bean mix increasing amounts which increases the amount of protein in their diet. Health education has a special emphasis on clean water and sanitation. This education is then integrated with the construction and maintenance of latrines and community wells.
Food security is integral to CRWRC’s plan to improve nutritional standards in West Darfur. By providing agricultural and livelihood tools to vulnerable communities, CRWRC is increasing the security of an estimated 48, 000 conflict-affected individuals. Distributions of seeds, donkeys, tools, and natural pesticides help empower families to support themselves. In order to maintain the health of farm animals –necessary to the health of the community- two veterinary clinics were established in the area. 45 community members also received training in livestock treatment and a package of veterinary tools, utensils and drugs.
The most recent phase of the project has been the “Food for Recovery” program. Partnering with the World Food Program, CRWRC is supporting 5, 000 vulnerable households with food. In exchange for food 4, 000 households help rebuild the infrastructures of their communities. The remaining 1, 000 households who receive food are extremely vulnerable families who are not asked to work.
With the help of the community CRWRC identified a variety of ways to build towards recovery. Some of the projects developed include: planting and nurturing 60, 000 fruit and shade trees, digging 80 school latrine pits, constructing 12 additional supplementary feeding centres, and excavating 2.5 kilometers of water pipe trenches.
While the civil war continues unabated putting thousands of families at risk, CRWRC continues to assist and is in the process of planning its next phase of intervention.
Southern Sudan: Helping Farming Families Return Home
CRWRC is launching a new initiative to assist families recovering from war in Southern Sudan. This program is targeting farm families who have returned to the Central Equitoria state and Western Equitoria state of Sudan from their temporary homes in Uganda, Khartoum, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Kenya.
This part of Sudan has rich soils, lots of available land, and rainfall patterns that usually allow for two crops per year. The CRWRC program will help subsistence farmers learn new agricultural techniques and open new land through oxen plowing and/or the use of tractors. The program will also explore opportunities for marketing farm produce in the capital city of Juba. The strategy is to start small and see which project, or combination of projects, has the most impact and scale up from there.
Nate Engle is the Program Manager and Country Representative for CRWRC’s work in Southern Sudan. He hails from Grand Rapids, Michigan and has previously worked as an agricultural extension agent in Madagascar with the Peace Corps. There, he helped rural farmers improve their agricultural techniques and develop systems to export rice and coffee to new domestic and international markets. After completing his two-year service commitment with the Peace Corps, Nate worked for another two years in Madagascar in the private sector for two US companies. Nate’s formal education includes a Bachelor of Science degree from Michigan State University, and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Grand Valley State University. He arrived in Southern Sudan in early August 2009 and hopes to be joined soon by his wife, Anita. "