EU-IOM Joint Initiative

for Migrant Protection and Reintegration

Over 1,200 migrants and migrant returnees in Sudan have received food parcels to support them to cope with the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This came at a time when migrants and returnees continue to be disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus. Restrictions aimed at containing the pandemic have also left many stranded, in some instances curtailing livelihood options. Exacerbating the situation were the floods that swept through Sudan towards the end of 2020.

The recent food assistance was provided in January by the EU-IOM Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and Reintegration in the Horn of Africa. The distribution was organised through the two Migrant Resource and Response Centre (MRRC) in Khartoum and Gedaref, both one-stop centres for migrants in distress, managed by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

Selecting the beneficiaries, along with the distribution locations and gathering the migrants, was coordinated with migrant community leaders, ensuring that the support reached vulnerable individuals. The food assistance was provided to beneficiaries from Ethiopia, Eritrea, Niger, Nigeria, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Each food parcel contained six packets of flour, along with sugar, lentils, and oil.

Sudan presents a complex and diverse migration profile as a source, transit and destination country at the centre of multiple migration routes and is host to several migrant populations. With support from IOM, the country is also facilitating the return and reintegration of its nationals, many of whom were stranded in Libya. 

"The food aid provides me with my basic household needs, to make bread and to use oil for all meal preparations; it's become difficult to obtain these basic items under the current economic situation," said Dawoud, a 50-year-old father of three from the DRC.

Froyeeni, a 32-year-old Eritrean mother of two boys, said: “Providing for two kids when you're a single mother is difficult; currently I'm unemployed and the support is a great help for me to put food on the table."

The most vulnerable returnees were largely identified through the EU-IOM Joint Initiative team at the IOM office in Khartoum. One of them is Khadija. “I am feeling thankful to receive this support during these critical times; it will assist to feed my family and ease our struggle," she said.

Coordinator of the EU-IOM Joint Initiative in Sudan, Alia Hirji said: "We have to make sure migrants, and migrant returnees are supported in their time of need through our programme, especially those who are affected by the current situation."

Since the onset of COVID-19, the EU-IOM Joint Initiative has continued to reach out to assist migrants and returnees. 

In December, a team from the programme visited the Northern State and provided food items and personal protective equipment for around 300 families of about 900 individuals. This was done in coordination with the Sudanese Red Crescent Society.

The Northern State consists of the capital Dongola and the town of Al Muthelas. It is a major transit and migrant sending region for mainly young people headed for Libya.

 About the EU-IOM Joint Initiative

Launched in December 2016 and funded by the European Union (EU) Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, the programme brings together 26 African countries of the Sahel and Lake Chad region, the Horn of Africa, and North Africa, the EU and IOM around the goal of ensuring migration is safer, more informed and better governed for both migrants and their communities.

For more information please contact Yasir Elbakri at IOM Sudan, email: yelbakri@iom.int; or the IOM Regional Office in Nairobi: Julia Hartlieb, email: jhartlieb@iom.int and Wilson Johwa, email: wjohwa@iom.int