Sudan: Special Envoy to brief press on recent mission

(New York: 29 September) - Ambassador Tom Eric Vraalsen, the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Humanitarian Needs for Sudan, will brief the New York Headquarters press corps today on his recently completed mission to Sudan and Kenya.
While in Sudan, Ambassador Vraalsen visited the Darfur region, Khartoum, and travelled to Unity and Blue Nile States. His mission also took him to Kenya, where he stopped in at Lokichoggio, proceeded to Naivasha where peace talks are being held, and finally continued to Nairobi.

During his mission, the Special Envoy met with senior officials of the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), as well as with representatives of the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A). Highlights of the mission included Sudanese authorities' official decision on 18 September to lift restrictions on in-country travel of foreigners. This decision, which remains to be tested, immediately followed the UN's request to the Foreign Ministry in this regard. Another important development was that the Government of Sudan and the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) signed an agreement that would allow "free and unimpeded" humanitarian access to Sudan's Darfur region, which covers some 20 per cent of that country's territory.

The Special Envoy strongly encouraged donors to urgently and generously support UN Appeals for the pre-interim period, so that all UN programmes and activities could be initiated immediately following the signing of a political settlement. The total budget for 2003 priority relief and new post-conflict programmes is $316.2 million. For emergency programmes, only 34% of UN's proposed $262.9 million 2003 appeal for has so far been funded. A total of US$89 million has been received by September for relief in Africa's largest country. Of that, approximately US$53 million was earmarked for food aid operations.

The United Nations, repositioned for peace in Sudan after years of emergency relief on both sides of the frontline, has prepared a new US$142.3 million package of quick-start programmes. The Quick Start Peace Impact Programme has been developed in consultations with both parties to the conflict and has been presented to donors. This peace impact programme, if funded, would be implementable immediately a comprehensive peace agreement is signed. It includes nationwide activities in food security, agriculture, health water, education, training, road rehabilitation, the demobilisation of child soldiers and human rights.

Another humanitarian programme, "the Greater Darfur Special Initiative", for the western Darfur region, where a ceasefire between the government and the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) was also launched during the Special Envoy's mission. The objectives of the initiative are to accelerate humanitarian relief provision to the most vulnerable population groups; to help defuse immediate triggers to violence through 'quick start-peace impact' (QS-PIP) measures; and to assist Sudanese stakeholders to build confidence and begin addressing the longer-term underlying factors that generate conflict. The United Nations seeks US$ 22.8 million for this Greater Darfur Special Initiative.

For further information, please contact: New York: Brian Grogan (212) 963-1143