10 September 2013 - UNMISS staff in Warrap State today donated various food items to residents of Mayen Gumel village in state capital Kuajok who were affected by recent floods.

Led by the mission's acting State Coordinator Isaac Lappia, an UNMISS team delivered 26 bags of sorghum, two boxes of biscuits and a bag of flour to residents of the village's fourteenth block.

"UNMISS staff, in whichever (small) way, sought to alleviate the suffering of the flood-affected victims, especially those ... very near to our base here in Kuajok town," said Mr. Lappia. "We want to ... help raise the spirit of the community following the impact of the floods."

Angelo Ngor of the Warrap State Relief and Rehabilitation Commission witnessed the handover of the items, which were bought with personal donations made by UNMISS staff members that totaled 4,425 South Sudanese pounds (about 1000 U.S. dollars).

This year's heavy rains have hit hard all six counties in the state. According to a recent report by the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), 27,000 people in five states of South Sudan needed assistance as of 1 September following the floods. Over 60 per cent of those flood victims live in Warrap State.

"In all the states where floods have happened so far, heavy rains have caused damage to houses, crops and basic infrastructure," the OCHA report said.

"Assessment findings have shown that the most urgent needs are for household items, clean water, emergency drugs and, in some cases, short-term food assistance to get families through the flood season."