The arrival of the over 500 women and children of all ages and a handful of men marks the first wave of returnees displaced following a government order asking cattle camp inhabitants and keepers to vacate central equatorial after waves of violence erupted from conflicts associated with grazing areas.

The returnees are temporarily taking sheltering on the premises of a weighing station constructed by UNHCR located 22 kilometers from the UNMISS Bor base.  In response to the arrival, UNMISS, UN Agencies, and other implementing partners formed a rapid humanitarian response, and immediately commenced registration/classification while WFP distributed food items including maize, lentils, cooking oil, salt and cereal to sustain the returnees from arrival to the point of departure to their final destination.

The OCHA Head of Office John Rugah expressed happiness on the safe return of the 500 people, who took three days to reach Bor, via the Nile River.   OCHA head informed that while essential to respond to the humanitarian needs of the returnees, more importantly is the need for Government to urgently decide the next step and destination for the returnees, as the humanitarian community, “we have no desire to set up another camp here, we have made it known to the government and we are standing firmly on that. We are only given food rations to support the returnees and there will be no distribution of NFIs, shelter material or any other items”, he said,

Jonglei’s Governor Philip Aguer Panyang Jot visited the returnees and gave out food items, while the County Commissioner pledged a few cows.