Unity State South Sudan April - September 2020
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Humanitarian Situation Monitoring, Unity State South Sudan April - September 2020 Introduction Map 1: REACH assessment coverage of Unity State, April (A), May (B) and June (C) July (D) and Reported humanitarian needs increased across Unity State throughout the second and third quarters September (E) 2020 of 2020. Between April and June 2020, the onset of the annual lean season, continued insecurity A E and COVID-19 related restrictions drove humanitarian needs across Unity state. From July onwards, severe flooding and a growing economic crisis, compounded existing humanitarian needs as affected communities’ access to services appeared highly limited. Pariang Specific information about humanitarian needs in remote areas of the state remained scarce and k Abiemnhom difficult to obtain, creating barriers for humanitarian programming and targeting of assistance. Guit k © OpenStreetMap To inform humanitarian actors working outside formal settlement sites, REACH has conducted k Mayom Rubkona B assessments of hard-to-reach areas in South Sudan since December 2015. Data is collected every month through interviews with key informants (KIs) with knowledge of a settlement and triangulated Koch k with focus group discussions (FGDs). This Situation Overview uses this data and secondary sources to analyse changes in observed humanitarian needs across Unity State from April to September 2020. Leer k . Mayendit Methodology © OpenStreetMap C Panyijiar k To provide an indicative overview of the situation in hard-to-reach areas of Unity State, REACH uses primary data from key informants (KIs) who have recently arrived from, recently visited, or receive regular information from a settlement, or “Area of Knowledge” (AoK). Information for this report was collected from KIs in Bentiu Protection of Civilians (PoC) site, Nyal Town and Jamjang © OpenStreetMap Town in Unity State in April, May, June, July, and September 2020. In-depth interviews on humanitarian needs were conducted on a monthly basis using a structured survey tool. After data collection was completed, all data was aggregated at settlement level, and settlements were assigned the modal, or most credible response. When no consensus could be © OpenStreetMap found for a settlement, that settlement was not included in reporting. D Only counties with interview coverage of at least 5% of all settlements1 in a given month were included in analysis. Due to access and operational constraints, the specific settlements assessed within each county each month vary. In order to reduce the likelihood that variations in data are # of assessed settlements: 1,300 attributable to coverage differences, over time analyses were only conducted for counties with at # of counties covered: 9 (of 9) 2 least 70% consistent payam coverage over the period. Quantitative findings were triangulated with # of focus group discussions conducted: 18 focus group discussions (FGDs) with people displaced from hard-to-reach areas, and secondary sources. More details of the methodology can be found in the AoK ToRs. © OpenStreetMap 1. To calculate the percentage of AoK coverage, the total number of settlements per county is based on OCHA settlement lists in addition to new settlements mapped by KIs reached each month. 2. Payam is the administrative unit below the county-level. Situation Overview: Unity State April - September 2020 Key Findings Displacement: The proportion of assessed settlements that reported the presence of disease prevalence. Indeed, if water is not treated with a residual disinfectant such as Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) remained at a stable rate between April (48%) chlorine, there is a significant risk of source or post-delivery contamination.5 The risk will be and September (51%). Reflective of the continued violence affecting Unity, insecurity determined by population density, excreta disposal arrangements, hygiene practices and the Latrine blocks remained the main reported push factor for IDPs in assessed settlements across Unity 6 28% separated by gender State from April (24% of assessed settlements). From July, findings indicated atypical prevalence of diarrhoeal disease. seasonal flooding also resulted in widespread displacement. The northern and southern Health and Nutrition: During the reporting period, severe flooding has likely further affected counties of Unity (Pariang, Panyijiar, Leer and Mayendit) were affected most severely, access to healthcare due to poor road conditions limiting supply. Malaria was the most particularly towards the end of the reporting period, resulting in population movement to commonly reported health problem across all assessed settlements in Unity State, with higher ground. Reportedly, COVID-19 also disrupted normal movement patterns during the reporting period, likely related to NGOs’ awareness campaigns and the closure of three-quarters (76%) of assessed settlements reporting malaria as the main perceived health international borders in the second quarter, and more relaxed measures in the third problem in September 2020. The main reported barrier to accessing health in September quarter. 2020 was a lack of medication (20% of assessed settlements across Unity). However, notably feeding programmes that provided Plumpy Sup, CSB++ or other nutrition items Food Security and Livelihoods (FSL): Findings suggest that the FSL situation across were seemingly widely provided (90% of assessed settlements in September 2020). Unity State deteriorated further throughout the reporting period. The proportion of assessed settlements reporting that most people had adequate access to food plummeted from 83% Map 2: Assessed settlements reporting malaria as the main perceived health problem in September in Unity, 2020: in April, to 63% in July and to just 39% in September. This was likely a consequence of COVID-19 related movement restrictions delaying humanitarian food assistance (HFA), soaring inflation3 and severe flooding.4 Of the 36% assessed settlements reporting that most people did not have adequate access to food, 20% reported that this was because crops were destroyed by flooding between April and September 2020. Protection: Reflective of continued protection concerns, one-third of assessed settlements reported most people felt unsafe in September. Findings suggest that the main contributing factors to persistent feelings of insecurity were cattle raiding, with the majority of incidents reported in the northern and central regions. Between April and September, nearly forty percent of assessed settlements reported most people felt unsafe most of the time. Assessed settlements reported incidents of looting in which property was stolen from one or more households (36%), and incidents in which at least Shelter/ Non Food Items (NFI): Shelter destruction due to flooding reportedly affected 53% one civilian was killed (19%), as other factors to persistent feelings of insecurity during of assessed settlements state-wide. By September, the proportion of assessed settlements the reporting period. that reported flooding made them leave their homes or sleep somehwere else was particularly Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH): Despite multiple awareness campaigns high in Panyijiar (93%), Mayendit (78%), Leer (77%) and Koch (77%). following the declaration of the COVID-19 emergency, water sanitation and hygiene Education: Schools across South Sudan have been closed from March 2020 as a COVID-19 (WASH) conditions were reported to be inadequate during the reporting period. In preventive measure. Consequently, there was a drastic drop in access to education during September, 37% of assessed settlements reported that people used surface water the reporting period, with 94% of assessed settlements reporting that education services sources for drinking water, while 77% reported people did not use latrines. Drinking from were not available within walking distance in September, against 27% in March 2020. unimproved water sources can have serious health implications and cause a higher 3. REACH. South Sudan Joint Market Monitoring Initiative. October 2020. 2 4. FEWSNET key message update, September 2020. 5. Sphere Association. Core Humanitarian Standard on Quality and Accountability. 2018. 6. ibid. Situation Overview: Unity Sate April - September 2020 Map 3: Assessed settlements reporting IDPs arriving in the last 3 months prior to data collection, in Unity Population Movement and Displacement State: During the reporting period, the proportion of assessed settlements where KIs reported the presence of IDPs remained high between April (48%) and September (51%). Findings indicate that population movement and displacement across Unity State were mainly driven by localised conflict, flooding, and COVID-19 related movement restrictions. Reflective of the continued violence affecting Unity,7 insecurity remained the main reported push factor for IDPs in assessed settlements across Unity State in April, with 24% of assessed settlements reporting insecurity (which includes cattle-raiding, killing, fighting and looting) as the main push factor for IDP movement. According to KIs, in assessed settlements, the majority of recently displaced IDPs travelled within their counties, possibly due to the localised nature of the violence and insecurities affecting Unity State. FGD participants from northern and central Unity reported large-scale displacements due to continued insecurity (cattle-raiding) in May and June 2020 in Mayom and Rubkona counties.8 Reportedly, armed clashes and sub-national violence was