23 December 2013 - Aid agencies are now assisting thousands of civilians affected by recent armed violence in South Sudan, according to a statement issued by a top UN official today.

Non-governmental organizations and UN agencies were providing life-saving services to an estimated 20,000 people now living in two peacekeeping compounds in Juba, Humanitarian Coordinator in South Sudan Toby Lanzer said in the statement.

The services included water and sanitation, shelter and emergency healthcare.

“Emergency latrines are being dug, high-energy biscuits provided to meet urgent nutritional needs of children and other vulnerable people, and emergency surgical supplies, drugs, and reproductive health kits delivered to hospitals around Juba,” Mr. Lanzer said.

Aid agencies and UNMISS had also been able to deliver food to some 7,000 people who had sought shelter in the UN peacekeeping base in Bentiu, Unity State.

“While assistance is underway in these two cities, I am also concerned about thousands of people affected by the
past week’s violence in other parts of the country,” the humanitarian coordinator said.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the estimated number of people displaced by the crisis countrywide has risen to 81,000. But the number is likely significantly higher, given the lack of access to civilians outside major towns.

The situation was particularly bad in Jonglei and Unity states, where fighting had displaced thousands of civilians, Mr. Lanzer noted. The humanitarian coordinator had just returned from Bor in Jonglei, where he said an estimated 17,000 people had sought protection in the UNMISS base.

Conditions are also fragile in Upper Nile State, where sporadic fighting has been reported in several locations in past days, according to OCHA.

With poor sanitation conditions in Juba sites, diseases like malaria and diarrhea are potential threats to displaced people in the camps, OCHA warned. These concerns are also valid for camps in Bor and Bentiu.

Mr. Lanzer noted that aid workers were under intense pressure, with humanitarian compounds looted in several locations.

“We are looking at a massive increase in need and I am engaging all parties to ensure that civilians are protected and that aid workers are able to access people who need our help,” he said.