Sudan: Source of Fragility - USAID visit to

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 KHARTOUM 000289 SIPDIS AIDAC SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/SPG, PRM, AND ALSO PASS USAID/W USAID FOR DCHA SUDAN TEAM, AF/EA, DCHA NAIROBI FOR USAID/DCHA/OFDA, USAID/REDSO, AND FAS USMISSION UN ROME GENEVA FOR NKYLOH NAIROBI FOR SFO NSC FOR JMELINE, TSHORTLEY USUN FOR TMALY BRUSSELS FOR PLERNER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREF PGOV PHUM EAID SOCI SU SUBJECT: Sudan: Source of Fragility - USAID visit to Malakal REF: (A) Khartoum 019141 (B) Khartoum 02138 (C) Khartoum 02140 -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. From January 23 to 30, a USAID Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance (USAID/DCHA) team visited Malakal town, capital of Upper Nile State, and the surrounding areas to discuss priority needs and plan immediate activities that will promote stability. The team traveled up the Nile River to meet the King of the Shilluk community. Factors affecting stability include: conflicts at both community and political levels over Upper Nile's abundant resources; an uneasy political setup led by a governor from the National Congress Party (NCP); pervasiveness of small arms; large numbers of IDPs and returnees without adequate services; and high expectations of the peace process. USAID's Office of Transition Initiatives (USAID/OTI) will return to Malakal in early February to finalize plans for a series of priority quick impact activities. This is the third in a series of cables analyzing sources of instability in the peace process and what actions can be taken through USAID programming to mitigate the likelihood of instability. Previous cables reported on Eastern Upper Nile, the Nuba Mountains, and Abyei. End Summary. -------------- Background -------------- ¶2. As part of a series of field visits to assess the effectiveness of USAID/DCHA programming to support the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA),address sources of instability, and build local capacity, a USAID/DCHA team visited Malakal and environs from January 23 to 30. (Previous visits to Eastern Upper Nile, Nuba Mountains, and Abyei, are reported in reftels a, b, and c). The team visiting Malakal included OTI and Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) staff from the DCHA team in Nairobi, the FSN internally displaced person (IDP) focal point from the USAID/Khartoum office, as well a representative from OTI's implementing partner Development Alternatives, Inc. (DAI). -------------- -------------- Major Factors Affecting Stability in Upper Nile State -------------- -------------- ¶3. Upper Nile, due to its rich economic potential, geographic location, and site as one of the major areas for IDP returns, is highly vulnerable to instability. Key factors are detailed as follows: a. Resource/Economic Factors: Conflict recurs at both community and political levels over Upper Nile's abundant resources: water, pastures, fishing, petroleum, gum Arabic, and the agricultural land in the north of the state that has been allocated by the Government to outsiders. The state has allocated monopoly control over the sale of fish and gum Arabic to outsiders for tax purposes to the detriment of local populations. The abundant resources of the state are not used to develop the state or benefit the people. Even if the political factors are addressed by the CPA, the resource factors remain and can re-ignite conflict. b. Geographic Factors: Upper Nile State is a Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) state bordering the north, yet tends to be more oriented to Khartoum than to Juba - with mixed results. The river provides easy economic access for people and goods, while the political orientation to Khartoum does not lend itself easily to harmonizing with the GOSS in Juba. Upper Nile's location on the border with Ethiopia also makes for uneasy times - recently the Ethiopian army crossed the border in pursuit of Oromo opposition fighters in Maiwut. c. Political Factors: Upper Nile is the only state in KHARTOUM 00000289 002 OF 004 the south with a governor from the NCP. The three separate systems of government that used to exist in the state - GOS/NCP, Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM),and militia groups - are now combined into one uneasy arrangement, with unhappy losers. There are 23 warlords in the state. Most have joined the SPLA, but some did not, and things are not yet settled - some are still switching sides. At this writing, the Joint Integrated Units (JIU) under the CPA are not yet finalized. d. Proliferation of Small Arms: Besides the unsettled armed groups, many civilians are armed and the disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration program is not scheduled to start until late 2006. e. Unequal Distribution of Services: This is a frequent cause of inter-community conflict, and a challenge for humanitarians whose guiding philosophy is "do no harm." f. Returnees: Many people displaced by conflict are returning to and through the state, a destabilizing factor that has not yet caused conflict but has the potential to do so. Some areas where long-distance returnees would settle are currently occupied by IDPs displaced by local conflicts. Malakal town has many IDPs from nearby villages burned during fighting in early ¶2004. Last rainy season, returnees slept everywhere in town, including in shops. There is no program to assist these people to return to their home areas, nor are the rural areas adequately prepared with services. g. Urban Issues: Malakal is overcrowded with IDPs, returnees passing through, and with job seekers. Services are inadequate - people defecate on the ground and the old rainwater drainage system does not work. This is a great public health hazard. The soil in Malakal is a heavy clay soil that makes digging latrines particularly challenging and expensive due to the linings that must be constructed. During the rains, parts of the town are flooded for weeks with a meter of water and movement around the city is impossible by car. Water and electricity do not reach all, and there are few generators. High unemployment exists, although USAID/OFDA's partner Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) has launched a town clean-up campaign designed to give hundreds of people cash-for-work opportunities. h. Poverty: People are suffering from hunger and lack of services, making survival difficult. Combined with the recent culture of violence, communities often rob their neighbors. i. Ignorance: People do not know their rights or understand general developments and are easily manipulated. j. Unrealistically High Expectations: Those who fought and suffered in this long war were told that there will be a new government and economic system and many changes, but no changes are yet visible. There are still few services in the town, and no services at all in many rural areas. This was understandable during the war, but people now want to see changes. The delay in implementing the CPA is troubling people. -------------- -------------- Programs to Address the Causes of Instability/Conflict -------------- -------------- ¶4. USAID has a significant humanitarian program in Upper Nile State through nine international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and several U.N. agencies. Four NGOs provide primary health care services in the eastern and central parts of the state as well as in Malakal town. One NGO is drilling nearly 60 boreholes in several counties. Three NGOs are improving food security through agricultural, veterinary, and fishing programs. Two NGOs are assisting IDPs to return and resettle in their home areas - one focusing on returnees coming from the north KHARTOUM 00000289 003 OF 004 to the south via the Nile river, and one focusing on eastern Upper Nile. USAID's transition program has not yet started in Upper Nile State, but will do so very quickly with a focus on Malakal town. ¶5. NGOs, U.N. agencies, and government counterparts in Malakal suggested the following areas of focus: a. Addressing public health hazards in Malakal town including improving the water system, repairing the town drainage system, building household and public latrines, and renovating the abattoir; b. Addressing the needs of returnees by: helping IDPs in town to resettle in their nearby villages and cultivate their land; expanding basic services such as health, education, and water in rural areas; linking rural employment to rural infrastructure activities; and improving the travel conditions of the returnees using the Nile river corridor by providing basic health services, clean water, and protection for unaccompanied minors on barges; c. Community mobilization for peace-building programs through civil society and community-based organizations; d. Improve public information such as radio, internet/e- mail, and dissemination and discussions of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA); and e. Training town and county government officials. -------------- MEETING THE SHILLUK KING -------------- ¶6. On January 24, the team traveled one hour by motorboat up the Nile to Aleki, the home village of the Shilluk King. This king descended from a line that started in 1540, and is the strongest traditional leader in Sudan with influence over a significant ethnic group. The team presented the purpose of its trip to Malakal, provided information on current USAID programs in Upper Nile State, and sought the king's advice on priority activities for USAID in the area. a. The king launched immediately into his most urgent concern. As he explained, some people from the Uliaya tribe of South Kordofan that neighbors the Shilluk to the northwest have recently settled on Shilluk land to harvest gum Arabic, chasing away the local inhabitants. While there has not yet been fighting, many weapons are present in the area and conflict could result if the dispute remains unsettled. In the king's view, this action violates the CPA and he asked that a land tenure team come and investigate before conflict erupts. He opined that outsiders or private companies are free to come to the area and negotiate fairly with the owners of the land to harvest the gum, but it cannot be done by force in the New Sudan. He further stated that the state government was behind this illegal land grab to benefit from taxes. b. The king said that Shilluk returnees do not need much help to re-integrate into their communities. The key factor discouraging returns is that services are better where they are in areas of displacement, especially schools and health clinics. He offered his help in working with international organizations to advise them were to build schools and clinics in villages, and in mobilizing communities to work with organizations. c. The king showed the team an impressive four-room school built, in addition to a clinic, with USD 20,000 he received from the Government of Sudan. Both needed further support - the school needs furniture, blackboards, and materials; and the clinic needs general renovation. USAID/OTI plans to do this in the coming three months. -------------- KHARTOUM 00000289 004 OF 004 Returnees Along the Sobat River -------------- ¶7. The USAID IDP focal point visited the villages of Atar Ardeba and Atar Madrassa on the Sobat River and found that a significant number of displaced persons have arrived from the north and from the neighboring countries of Uganda and Kenya. These returnees have managed to re- settle fairly easily and are welcomed by local communities. The returnees expressed disappointment about the lack of schools, proper health structures, and clean water. Residents of both villages collect all drinking water directly from the river. Despite these conditions, returnees expressed the intention to stay in the villages and not lose hope that the GoSS and the international community would eventually provide services. ¶8. In Malakal town, the number of IDPs returning from the north using the river corridor is increasing, especially during the dry season that will end in March. USAID/OFDA partner ADRA is managing a monitoring and tracking system that has logged the return of 42,000 people from March 2005 to date. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR),the U.N. organization mandated to provide protection for IDPs, remains hesitant to support the way station at Malakal because it is located next to an SPLA military base. The U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) and ADRA are providing shelter, clean water, and latrines for the way station, which is ready for operation. HUME