The IRC in South Sudan

MORE ABOUT THE IRC IN SOUTH SUDAN

On January 9, 2011, South Sudan held a referendum in which its people almost unanimously decided to secede and become the world’s newest independent country.

After decades of civil war and neglect, South Sudan is one of the poorest and most undeveloped regions in the world.  Since the signing of the 2005 peace agreement—bringing an end to one of Africa’s longest running wars, which claimed more than two million lives—South Sudan has had to rebuild from scratch.

Millions of South Sudanese are dependent on food aid, maternal mortality rates are among the worst in the world and one in seven children dies before the age of five. Much of the region’s economic and social infrastructure was left in ruins. There are few functioning schools and hospitals.

As the people of South Sudan begin to build a new country, it is more urgent than ever that the international community provide long-term support and assistance.

The IRC has been one of the largest providers of aid in South Sudan for more than 20 years. The IRC aids communities devastated by war with emergency relief, reconstruction assistance and with programs focusing on health care, education, rights and reintegration, and ways to reduce violence against women. The IRC also helps local communities develop the ability to support and sustain themselves.

The IRC works in six South Sudanese states: Central Equatoria, Eastern Equatoria, Western Equatoria, Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Unity and Lakes.

The IRC was also delivering humanitarian aid to around 2 million people in Darfur, North and East Sudan until March 2009. A decision by the government of Sudan to expel the IRC and 12 other international aid agencies effectively halted these programs overnight.