YouSaid · the spoken record

Wosornu

lines on the record: 92
first: 2023-05-17
most recent: 2023-11-28
sittings or episodes: 9
sources: un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“The people of Syria have suffered more than enough. Yet this winter, humanitarians are being asked to prioritize one vulnerable life over another vulnerable life. We are being forced to cut critical assistance programmes when there is little chance for the restoration of regular services. That is the stark reality of the current situation. What we need is urgent funding to save lives and stem a further catastrophic deterioration of the humanitarian situation. We need funding. We need it now. We need sustained humanitarian access through all modalities as well. And, more than anything else, we need genuine progress towards an end to the conflict, without which it is impossible to stem the tide of the vast humanitarian needs in Syria.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“Some 2.3 million women of reproductive age are losing access to sexual and reproductive health services, including maternal health care. That is 10.4 per cent of the population. Close to 1 million children under the age of five are not receiving routine immunizations. Almost 6 million people are not receiving urgently needed nutritional assistance — 74 per cent of those people are women and girls. That includes 200,000 acutely malnourished children, which is 27 per cent of the population. Hundreds of hospitals and health centres are being forced to close or scale down operations owing to the lack of funding. And survivors of gender-based violence are losing access to necessary support and health care, while prevention activities are being deprioritized to meet the most urgent, absolute needs.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“We are again grateful for the generosity of donors — from whom we have received $1.8 billion of the $5.4 billion requested. Let me remind the Council that, at this time last year, the plan was 44 per cent funded — and this time, it is only 33 per cent funded. Such low funding levels are unprecedented for a humanitarian crisis of this magnitude. I cannot overstate the impact that this lack of resources is having on our ability to meet the needs of millions of people in desperate need throughout Syria. Some 2.5 million people no longer receive the food assistance they need. As mentioned earlier, following the World Food Programme cuts in June, the number of those receiving food assistance decreased by a further 45 per cent, from 5.2 million people to 3 million people.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“As the Council can see, we are facing a troubling, significant 70 per cent shortfall in the funds required to deliver that vital support. While we have mobilized some additional funds — thanks to the generosity of donors who fund the pooled funds of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs — without additional donor funding, we will not be able to meet the needs of many people, who will spend the winter exposed to the elements. Those funding issues extend to the humanitarian response at large. In September, I informed the Council that the humanitarian response plan for Syria was less than 30 per cent funded (see S/PV.9426). The needle has barely moved since. The plan is funded to only 33 per cent today.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“The lack of protection against cold temperatures poses significant health risks, particularly for vulnerable segments of the population, such as children and the elderly. Our teams on the ground estimate that 5.7 million people across Syria need critical assistance to help them through the cold winter months. Inadequate shelter, lack of proper heating and insufficient clothing and household items are among their most pressing needs. We humanitarians are doing what we can to meet and prioritize those needs. We have so far provided very little, having provided 100,000 people — some 26,000 families — with dignified shelters, with efforts ongoing to provide similar support to an additional 7,000 five-person families.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“The winter is approaching, and it is already exacerbating the suffering of displaced people, some 3.2 million of whom are located in Government areas. Again, women and girls, who make up 80 per cent of those in displacement camps and informal sites, continue to bear the brunt of this crisis. A staggering 92 per cent of women-headed households in displacement camps in Syria report insufficient ability or complete inability to meet the basic needs of their families. One of those women is Reem, the breadwinner of her family, who recently told one of our colleagues “I have five children. We cannot afford to eat. How can we survive this winter?” She cannot afford fuel for heating or clothes to keep her children warm.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“They provide the quickest and most efficient route to reach people in need in northern Aleppo, where 20 per cent of displacement camps and informal sites are located. We continue our engagement with the Government of Syria to ensure that the delivery of cross-border assistance is principled, sustained and predictable. Maintaining an independent and robust oversight mechanism at the border, in line with existing modalities, is essential. The sheer scale of needs across the country underscores the urgency of scaling up the delivery of aid via all modalities. We therefore continue our efforts to further expand the delivery of cross-line assistance to key areas in the north-west and throughout Syria.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“Meanwhile, crossings on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River remain closed, hampering the ability of people to access assistance, including health services. The United Nations remains committed to the principled delivery of humanitarian assistance to people in need throughout Syria, including in the north-west, where our cross-border operations remain a lifeline for more than 4 million people. Earlier this month, the Government of Syria extended its consent for the United Nations to use the Bab Al-Salam and Bab Al-Rai crossings to deliver aid from Türkiye for a period of three months, until 13 February 2024. We welcome that extension. More than 20 per cent of trucks and nearly 50 per cent of missions by United Nations personnel going into the north-west since February used those two crossings.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“Parents are afraid to send their children to school, worried about their safety. That not only affects children’s education but also exposes them to risks to their safety and well-being, including, as Ms. Rochdi mentioned, gender-based violence, violence against adolescent girls, child marriage and domestic violence. Attacks have also damaged power stations. The Allouk water station has not functioned since 5 October — I mentioned that in my previous briefing. That has deprived 1 million people of access to water in Al-Hasakah and neighbouring areas, including the Al-Hol camp. I would like to once again remind all parties that constant care must be taken to spare civilians and civilian infrastructure. That entails taking all feasible precautions to prevent and minimize civilian harm when planning and deciding on attacks.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“In all, dozens of civilians have been killed or injured in the violence, and more than 120,000 people have been displaced. While a majority of them have since managed to return to their homes, at least 10 per cent remain displaced. Some 5,000 of those people are hosted in reception centres, while the rest live in informal settlements. The impact on civilian facilities and critical infrastructure has been significant, with 40 health facilities, 27 schools and more than 20 water systems affected by the violence. Turning to the north-east, the uptick in hostilities that commenced in late August also continues and has further displaced 25,000 people who were already displaced. The violence in the north-east has also impacted multiple civilian facilities, including health centres and schools.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“Ms. Wosornu: The situation in Syria remains dire. Continued fighting and the displacement of tens of thousands of people have deepened humanitarian needs and compounded the suffering of civilians as they approach yet another winter under this conflict. Last month (see S/PV.9459), I reported on the humanitarian impact of the hostilities in the north-west, the most significant we have seen since 2019. As Deputy Special Envoy Rochdi just noted, those hostilities continued over the past month, albeit at a lower intensity, causing further civilian deaths and injuries. Allow me to shed some light on the situation. Over this past weekend alone, on 25 November, shelling in southern Idlib killed nine civilians — including one woman and six children from the same family — while they were harvesting olives on agricultural land.”
2023-11-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9487 (2023) · source
“This is a deeply concerning time for the region, and indeed for the world, and there is no shortage of crises crying out for our attention. However, with more than 15 million people in need of critical humanitarian and protection support in ever more challenging conditions, the situation in Syria is one that unquestionably demands our continued focus and attention.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“It is even more concerning as we approach the winter season, with an estimated 5.7 million people across the country in need of humanitarian support for critical shelter and household items. Those are life-saving items in the cold months. We are doing what we can to prioritize assistance within the resources available. The Syria Humanitarian Fund and the Syria Cross-border Humanitarian Fund are allocating nearly $50 million to mitigate the impact of the harsh winter conditions in vulnerable communities, including through the provision of tents and shelter, household items, water and sanitation support, cash- based assistance and efforts to boost early recovery and resilience. However, without additional funding and resources, many people will go without the support they need to get through the harsh winter months.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“It is therefore with deep concern that I report that we have seen little improvement over the past month in the serious funding shortfalls affecting our operations. Ten months into the year, the Syrian humanitarian response plan has received $1.6 billion of the $5.4 billion requested. We are deeply appreciative of the donors for their support, and we continue count on them for more funding. As we have repeatedly warned, this is translating into significant constraints on our ability to provide critical assistance throughout the country, resulting in reductions in food distributions, closures of safe spaces for women and girls and the scaling back of health services in medical facilities, among other things.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“As if the escalation in hostilities were not enough, the continued economic crisis, including the steep decline in the value of the Syrian pound and high inflation rates, is contributing to raising the prices of food and other items to further record highs. The combined impact of all those factors is not only piling immense pressure on an already-vulnerable population — as I heard when I was in Syria — it is also increasing the reliance on humanitarian assistance for basic survival. I ask members to consider, for example, Um Ahmad, a single mother in Hama, who was forced to make the difficult choice to pull her son out of school so that he could help support the family. Stories like hers are becoming increasingly common.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“In particular, the ability to deliver assistance at scale across the border from Türkiye has been indispensable in meeting the vast and increasing humanitarian needs. In the past six weeks, 251 trucks have brought in critical supplies through the Bab Al-Hawa or Bab Al-Salam crossings. We have asked the Government of Syria to extend its permission for the use of the Bab Al-Salam and Al-Rai crossings beyond 13 November, for as long as the humanitarian needs continue, to ensure that we can provide essential humanitarian assistance in a predictable and sustainable way. As part of our commitment to providing assistance by whatever means possible to those who need it, we continue efforts to facilitate the cross-line delivery of supplies to key areas in the north-west and throughout the country — and we shall continue to do so.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“Three aid workers were among those killed, and many organizations were forced to temporarily suspend operations. Some activities, including nutrition services and the provision of safe spaces for women and girls, remain suspended. Nevertheless, the United Nations and its humanitarian partners have continued their efforts to get critical assistance to those affected by the conflict. That includes the provision of clean water, waste management, food, tents, protection services and emergency medical supplies, including supplies for sexual and reproductive health services for displaced women, services for displaced persons in general and the provision of vital support to health facilities.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“While many services have been restored, those disruptions to already-precarious electricity, water and fuel supplies continue to make life extremely challenging for a vulnerable population and place a heightened demand on overstretched humanitarian services. I once again echo the Secretary-General in urging all parties across Syria to respect their obligations under international law. The parties must take constant care to spare civilians and civilian objects, including essential infrastructure, in accordance with international humanitarian law. The Special Envoy spoke to those issues as well. The escalation in hostilities has also had a deep impact on humanitarian workers and operations, particularly in the north-west of the country.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“As has been reported, they face pervasive threats of gender-based violence and barriers to accessing services and assistance. Hostilities have impeded life-saving sexual and reproductive health- care and gender-based violence services. Let me turn to the north-east, where, as has already been mentioned, a spike in hostilities earlier this month damaged a range of critical civilian infrastructure, including power stations and water facilities, in Al-Hasakah, Qamishli, Tel Tamer and other areas. Disruptions to electricity have impacted water and health facilities and increased the demand for fuel for generators and heating as the winter months approach. That has further inflated the already-high prices of fuel, transportation, food and other commodities.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“His mother told staff from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs that the boys had gathered that day to play football. She said that people are afraid all the time because of the increasing fighting and that they try to stay inside. She said that they need to be protected from hostilities and that they want to live in peace and security. While about half of those displaced by the violence have reportedly returned to their homes, many tens of thousands remain fearful of returning, further adding to the cohort of 2.9 million people already displaced in the north-west. And reports have continued to emerge of additional displacements in recent days. Women and girls, who make up 80 per cent of those in displacement camps and informal sites, continue to bear the most severe consequences.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“The hostilities have also damaged critical services and infrastructure, including more than 40 health facilities, two dozen schools and more than 20 water systems, in addition to temporarily affecting the main power station in Idlib. Attacks, including air strikes and artillery shelling, have continued on a near-daily basis, with reports of more people being killed and injured in the past week including, alarmingly, a growing number of children. One of those children was Sami, a 15-year-old boy who had been displaced to Idlib four years ago, and whose father, Nabil, works as a driver for a national non-governmental organization that partners with the United Nations. Sami and his childhood friend Ali were killed by shelling in Idlib on 26 October.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“In north-west Syria, we have seen the most significant escalation in violence since 2019. According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 70 civilians had been killed as of 20 October, including 36 women and 14 children. The civilian fatalities have occurred both in Government areas — notably, as Mr. Pedersen mentioned, in the drone attack on the Homs military academy graduation ceremony on 5 October — and in non-Government areas. Many more have been injured. In the span of two weeks, from 5 to 18 October, more than 120,000 people were displaced in Idlib and western Aleppo.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“Ms. Wosornu: In recent weeks, the world’s attention has been fixed on the crisis in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, and rightly so. But at the same time, we must not turn away from humanitarian crises that persist elsewhere, on a vast scale, including in the same region. I join the Security Council today from Cairo, having spent the past week visiting a number of countries in the region, including Syria. I therefore appreciate this opportunity to update members on the humanitarian situation in Syria, where the humanitarian emergency has continued to deepen in the weeks since our previous meeting on this topic (see S/PV.9426). This month, as we just heard from the Special Envoy, several areas across northern Syria experienced a serious escalation in hostilities.”
2023-10-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9459 (2023) · source
“UNICEF informs us that funding shortfalls are compromising access to education for millions of chil- dren and undermining urgent efforts to sustain water and sanitation systems, which are essential to prevent- ing catastrophic public health risks, including cholera. Similarly, the World Health Organization reports cuts to health services that affect millions of people and re- duce essential services, including child immunizations and disease surveillance. The resumption of United Nations aid deliveries through Bab Al-Hawa is positive news. However, as I have highlighted today, massive humanitarian needs and protection risks persist across the country. Much more is still needed for millions of people throughout Syria to reclaim a safe and dignified life.”
2023-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9426 (2023) · source
“Further cuts to already underfunded gender- based violence programmes will have profound conse- quences for survivors. Women and girls are paying a steep price. Their fundamental rights, including access to services that are critical for their health and well- being, have become a casualty of the conflict. Women and girls struggle to access health care, including re- productive services, because of widespread damage to health facilities, shortages of health workers, as previ- ously mentioned, limited transportation options, a lack of documentation, overcrowding and long wait times.”
2023-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9426 (2023) · source
“We have just three months left in the year, and yet the 2023 humanitarian response plan for Syria remains less than 30 per cent funded. That means that many humanitarian agencies are being forced to make painful decisions. As reported in July, the World Food Programme has had to cut assistance to 2.5 million people, while halving the standard ration for others. The Office of the United Nations High Commis- sioner for Refugees is having to cut and scale back es- sential assistance programmes, including interventions to respond to gender-based violence. In the north-west, some 17 safe spaces for women and girls were closed in the past few months, and two dozen more will be closed by the end of the year if additional funding is not received.”
2023-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9426 (2023) · source
“I strongly urge all the parties to the hostilities to uphold international human- itarian law and take all feasible precautions to avoid and minimize harm to civilians. Across the country, families are grappling with the continuing strain of a deepening economic crisis, again as Mr. Pedersen mentioned. The Syrian pound has lost more than half its value since the start of this year, while prices of essential food commodities have nearly doubled. At the beginning of this year, half of the population — some 12 million people — was food insecure. The situation has continued to worsen, and if these economic trends persist, we will likely see mil- lions more people slide into food insecurity. All that is happening against the backdrop of a sharp decline in the resources available for the humani- tarian response.”
2023-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9426 (2023) · source
“In addition, fighting in the north-east reportedly left 23 civilians killed and many more were injured in Deir ez-Zor governorate late last month, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Tens of thousands of people were displaced, while those who remained faced shortages of food and medicines. On Monday, a water station in Deir ez-Zor was damaged because of the continuing hostilities, leaving at least 17,000 people — many of them displaced from other areas — without access to safe drinking water. Hu- manitarian workers are focused on getting food, water, health and shelter assistance to affected people. Local organizations, including grassroots women’s organi- zations, play a critical role in ensuring that assistance equitably reaches those in need.”
2023-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9426 (2023) · source
“As the Special Envoy said, an escalation of hostili- ties in northern Syria earlier this month provided a stark reminder of the criticality of sustaining humanitarian assistance. Renewed hostilities in the past three weeks in the north and north-east of Aleppo have temporarily displaced — as previously mentioned — tens of thou- sands of people, many of whom have had to sleep in the open due to overcrowding in displacement camps. Civilian casualties have also been reported, including among women and children. Moreover, 32 schools have had to stop educational activities, 14 of which have been used as temporary shelters.”
2023-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9426 (2023) · source
“The reopening of Bab Al-Hawa for United Nations cross-border aid is the result of an understanding with the Government of Syria on the principled delivery of United Nations cross-border as- sistance, of operational and security assurances from the de facto authorities in Idlib and of consultations with a range of Member States, including the Repub- lic of Türkiye, donors, non-governmental organizations and other partners. The cross-border response extends beyond the movement of trucks. It means better functioning schools, health facilities and sanitation systems and improved access to safe drinking water and life-sav- ing protection services. It also includes the delivery of cash-based assistance. Our commitment to provid- ing humanitarian aid by all means possible, whether crossline or cross-border, remains unchanged.”
2023-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9426 (2023) · source
“In the interim, the United Nations and our partners have also used pre-positioned supplies and deliveries through the Bab Al-Salam and the Al-Rai border cross- ings to sustain programmes throughout north-west Syr- ia. Bab Al-Hawa, however, remains the central channel for cross-border assistance from Türkiye into north- west Syria. That development means that we can carry out deliveries at the scale required to meet the urgent needs of over 4 million people, 80 per cent of whom are women and children.”
2023-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9426 (2023) · source
“Ms. Wosornu: From the humanitarian side, allow me to begin today on a positive note. Last week saw the resumption of United Nations humanitarian deliveries from Türkiye into north-west Syria through the Bab Al-Hawa crossing. Since then, 65 trucks have crossed, carrying health and nutrition items and other vital relief supplies for more than 2 million people. We expect many more trucks to cross into the north-west in the coming days and weeks. Those were the first aid deliveries through Bab Al-Hawa since 10 July, when the authorization under resolution 2672 (2023) lapsed. United Nations personnel have also been able to go through this crossing, thereby enhancing our ability to support partners, monitor projects, engage with the communities we serve and strengthen the protection environment through physical presence on the ground.”
2023-09-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9426 (2023) · source
“We count on the international community’s support in addressing the drivers of humanitarian issues, such as conflict — including what is currently happening in its neighbour the Sudan — and natural disasters, which are undermining peace, development and stability and increasing humanitarian needs.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“The initiatives include collaborating more closely across the humanitarian, peace and development sectors and working with local leaders and communities to move decision-making closer to the people affected. It also includes the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Flagship Initiative, which is a pilot approach launched this year. That approach is designed to put communities and organizations affected at the forefront in driving humanitarian priorities and delivering the humanitarian response. I will conclude by saying that we have a responsibility to support the aspirations of the South Sudanese to fend for themselves and live a peaceful and dignified life. It is our hope that with the steadfast support and investment of the international community, South Sudan will make the progress it deserves.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“People want to re-establish careers and businesses. The Special Representative mentioned the basketball team as an example. Everyone, including displaced women and young people, wants to be able to provide for themselves and their families. They are working to help themselves. Despite the challenges, about 62 dynamic South Sudanese civil-society organizations, including local women-led organizations, are working diligently for their communities. They are providing front-line emergency life-saving services and informing their own humanitarian priorities. The humanitarian community in South Sudan is working closely with the Government and the people of South Sudan on some of their initiatives to support self-reliance.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“The humanitarian community will continue its work alongside the Government of South Sudan to meet the needs of its people and reprioritize activities to focus on those most in need. Despite the underfunding, I am pleased to note that approximately 4 million of the 6.8 million women, girls, men and boys in need across South Sudan received some form of humanitarian assistance in the first six months of 2023. We urgently need the international community to step up and support the humanitarian response and to invest in longer-term solutions for sustainability. The people of South Sudan want to move beyond humanitarian support, stand on their own two feet and thrive and flourish as an independent nation. We hear that consistently from people in Wau, Malakal and Bentiu. Farmers want to farm again.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“In addition, the unresolved status of Abyei also continues to present challenges, especially as humanitarian access to the northern part of the box has been difficult since the Sudan crisis began, impacting at least a quarter of a million people. Under the wider yearly humanitarian response plan for South Sudan in 2023, $1.7 billion is required to meet the needs of 6.8 million of the most vulnerable people in the country. Again, while we deeply appreciate the generosity of donors, particularly in these challenging economic times, the plan has received only $782 million, 46 per cent of the funding requirements. I particularly appreciate the call on 13 September from a few key donors for partnerships in addressing humanitarian needs in South Sudan.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“That means that issues related to the safety and security of humanitarian workers, physical access and bureaucratic impediments should not limit our ability to reach people in need. However, 34 humanitarian access incidents were reported across the country in July alone, compared to a total of 33 incidents at the same time in 2022. Furthermore, physical access continues to present major constraints. For example, in Unity state, the gradual deterioration of roads due to rainfall affected the delivery of humanitarian supplies to the 900,000 people in need. The movement of returnees in various locations, particularly in Koch, Leer, Mayendit and Payinjiar counties, has also been affected. We are grateful to the United Nations Mission in South Sudan for its efforts to mitigate some of those issues.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“Nearly 740,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women will have acute malnutrition this year, compared to 675,000 in 2022 and half a million in 2021. Nearly 80 per cent of the 1.9 million displaced people are female-headed households that are food insecure and are facing unstable livelihoods and acute malnutrition. We have also seen the rise in food insecurity increase gender- based violence. The interconnectedness of the Sudan and South Sudan’s economies and supply chains highlights the need for coordinated efforts to address the economic consequences of the conflict and ensure access to essential commodities for the people affected. To meet the needs of the most vulnerable people across South Sudan, the humanitarian community needs unimpeded humanitarian access.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“I would like to convey our deepest gratitude to the donors without whose support that could not have been sustained. The crisis in the Sudan is also having a deeply damaging impact on South Sudan’s trade and economy, with serious knock-on effects. They include the disruption in cross-border trade between the Sudan, South Sudan and other countries, leading to increases in food prices of between 20 and 75 per cent. That affects the 8 million people in South Sudan — 64 per cent of the population — who are already food insecure. Furthermore, rising market prices have increased the overall cost of the humanitarian response, putting further pressure on limited resources and reducing our ability to adequately respond to the needs.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“For example, as the Special Representative said, the lack of funding has hampered transport services in their efforts to move approximately 500 people on a daily basis. The release of $33 million — $18 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund and $15 million from the South Sudan Humanitarian Fund — has enabled those and other important services to continue. But that is only a temporary fix. It was originally envisaged that the emergency response plan for the South Sudan crisis would assist 180,000 people over three months at a cost of $96 million. However, with 600,000 people expected by the end of this year, a revision was necessary. The response plan now requires $356 million between May and December if vital support services are to continue, an issue I will address later in my statement.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“I do want to commend the Government of South Sudan for its efforts in supporting those arriving from the Sudan. The Government has collaborated with humanitarian workers, including through assistance with transportation — albeit not enough — for people as they make their onward journeys. We urge the Government to continue strengthening that critical support, including the provision of basic services at crossing points and in areas of return. The massive influx of returnees and refugees comes against a backdrop of funding challenges. That has imposed a huge burden on support systems and services that are already stretched, leaving insufficient capacity to meet the wide range of needs.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“At the beginning of the year, more than 9.4 million people in South Sudan, or 76 per cent of the population, required humanitarian assistance owing to various factors, including subnational violence, physical and other access constraints and climatic shocks, such as flooding and drought-like conditions. However, as of 5 September, more than 260,000 people had arrived in South Sudan seeking protection and safety. The majority — more than 91 per cent — are South Sudanese nationals fleeing violence in their neighbour, the Sudan. Many describe a perilous and challenging journey southward, including being subjected to harassment, physical violence and yet again, particularly in the case of women and girls, sexual violence. Most made the journey with little or no assistance along the way.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“Ms. Wosornu: I thank you, Madam President, for this opportunity to address the Security Council on the humanitarian situation in South Sudan. I am grateful to brief members, alongside Special Representative of the Secretary-General Haysom, whom I also thank for his comments on the humanitarian situation. Since our last briefing to the Council (see S/PV.9274), the humanitarian situation in South Sudan has continued to encounter major challenges. The conflict in neighbouring Sudan has deeply complicated the humanitarian picture. The Special Representative of the Secretary-General has touched on it. I will go into further detail, as he noted.”
2023-09-15 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9420 (2023) · source
“The longer this conflict continues, the more this catastrophe will deepen and the more lives will be lost and livelihoods destroyed. I therefore urge the international community to spare no effort in seeking a negotiated solution to bring this war to an end.”
2023-09-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9417 (2023) · source
“If we are to meet the urgent needs of the people of the Sudan, we desperately need increased donor support. We are grateful for the funding received so far, but we urge more to be done at speed and at scale. We thank the co-hosts of the ministerial event coming up on 20 September in the margins of General Assembly high-level week on the cost of inaction in the Sudan. That will be an important opportunity to show the people of the Sudan that we have not forgotten them and that the international community is committed to supporting them in their gravest time of need. I started my remarks by stating that the people of the Sudan were facing a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions. But I want to make one thing absolutely clear — the situation can and will get immeasurably worse unless urgent action is taken.”
2023-09-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9417 (2023) · source
“We would ask the Sudanese authorities to continue fast-tracking the remaining 240 pending visas, to grant longer visas — required for smooth project implementation — to our humanitarian partners and to continue working with us to establish a clearer and more predictable process. We count on the support of the Council for those urgent requirements. Even if those internal access obstacles were removed, a lack of funding for humanitarian operations would leave millions without the assistance they desperately need. Unfortunately, the $2.6 billion revised humanitarian response plan for this year is but 26 per cent funded. That is already affecting the ability of humanitarian operations and organizations to provide critical services such as water, sanitation, health and hygiene.”
2023-09-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9417 (2023) · source
“Clementine Nkweta-Salami, are actively reaching out to the leaders of the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces to put our humanitarian forum into action. The Special Representative of the Secretary- General referred to that. We urge the Member States to support our efforts to secure those commitments. This is a lifeline for the humanitarian operation. I also call on the Sudanese authorities to continue to redouble their efforts to facilitate humanitarian operations by fast-tracking visa processes, easing travel restrictions and expediting the customs clearances that will enable us to respond at the speed and scale required. We have been in continuous dialogue with the Sudanese authorities, both in Port Sudan and in New York. We are grateful for the 70 visas we received over the past two weeks alone.”
2023-09-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9417 (2023) · source
“Again, as Special Representative of the Secretary-General Perthes mentioned, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights reports that, in the past week alone, more than 103 civilians were killed during military operations by both parties in Khartoum and Omdurman. At least 51 were killed just two days ago in an attack on a market in the Janoob Al-Hazim district in South Khartoum, one of the highest tolls in a single incident since the fighting started on 15 April. If we are to scale up these life-saving operations, we desperately need the parties to the conflict to recommit to regular direct humanitarian dialogue with us, at a senior level. The Under-Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mr. Martin Griffiths, and the Resident Coordinator in the Sudan, Ms.”
2023-09-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9417 (2023) · source
“I want to flag in particular the critical role played by Sudanese civil society — again, as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General mentioned — and local humanitarian workers and associations, including the emergency response rooms in Khartoum. I spoke to them when I was in Khartoum and Port Sudan, and I was extremely impressed by what they have done and continue to do. Throughout this period, they have continued to deliver to those in need, despite the ever-present risks to their lives. It is imperative that all actors show full respect for international humanitarian law and protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, including by ensuring the safe passage of civilians fleeing violence in Khartoum, Darfur and other areas of active hostilities.”
2023-09-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9417 (2023) · source