Statement by Ms. Gwi-Yeop Son, the Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, on World Humanitarian Day 2019 [EN/AR]

Khartoum, 18 Aug 2019. Tomorrow, 19 August, on World Humanitarian Day, we join the humanitarian community around the world to celebrate and honour aid workers who are braving dangers, difficulties and risking their lives to provide assistance to those who need it the most. The commemoration comes together with yesterday’s signature of the agreement for the transitional civilian authority, a milestone in Sudanese history that deserves my most warm congratulations to the people of Sudan.

This year we want to pay special tribute to women humanitarians and recognise their vital yet often overlooked role in supporting people in need, in Sudan and worldwide. Every day, the strength, power and perseverance of women, often the first responders in the most remote communities, save uncountable number of lives. Many of them are responding to crises in their own communities, playing a central role in the survival and resilience of their families and communities.

Here in Sudan, women humanitarians can access people and places that men cannot and provide vital information, support and services to women and girls who would otherwise be out of reach. Our work and services for sexual and reproductive health, and prevention and response to gender-based violence would be even more difficult without them.
But despite being active in every aspect of humanitarian response - from disaster management to the delivery of emergency supplies – as women humanitarians we face a variety of obstacles in doing our work because of our gender. Too often, we face specific risks to our personal safety, including sexism, discrimination and sexual harassment. We have to do more to address these issues. Increasing women’s representation at the leadership level, where we are highly under-represented, is a good first step.

Notwithstanding the challenges, the results we women together with our male colleagues are achieving here in Sudan are commendable. I take this opportunity to say thank you. Thank you for being there for more than 1.6 million people reached with some form of humanitarian assistance, so far, in 2019; for more than 9 million girls and boys vaccinated against measles and polio since the beginning of the year; for over 16,000 women who have accessed services in response to gender-based violence. All of this in a difficult context, where the lack of funds combined with an increase in humanitarian needs put more pressure on the sector.

On this World Humanitarian Day, we also want to reiterate our commitment and support to the people of Sudan. In this important yet challenging moment of Sudanese history, we count on the support of the Government of Sudan together with the support of the international community, private sector and donors to address the critical needs in a timely manner. I especially call on all actors to create an enabling environment and provide sufficiente resources to ensure that women aid workers are able to do their work free from violence and harassment. We need to ensure our unequivocal commitment towards fully realizing gender equality, the human rights and empowerment of women and girls, at the same time as we respond to the needs of the most vulnerable.

*** Note:

This year’s World Humanitarian Day campaign is honouring the contribution of #WomenHumanitarians throughout the world, by raising awareness and rallying support for the unsung heroes on the front lines in some of the world’s most difficult contexts. During 24 hours, will tell 24 stories of 24 women that show the breadth and diversity of their roles in humanitarian action. *Join the campaign by going to www.worldhumanitarianday.org and sharing the messages.

For further information, please contact the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Sudan: Saviano Abreu (on mission), deabreuisidoro@un.org, +254 722 513 503 (WhatsApp), +249 912 130 340 (local number).