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Sudan crisis

Situation update: April 2008

This month marks the five-year anniversary of the Darfur crisis, yet the suffering and devastation continues on an unimaginable scale. Violence has left more than 4 million people in need of aid and forced 2.5 million to escape their homes and seek refuge in vast, crowded camps in Darfur and across the border in Chad. These numbers continue to rise as thousands more flee ongoing violence every month. 

With the conflict showing no sign of ending, many people are expecting to be stuck in the camps for the foreseeable future. They feel trapped, unable to return home, with limited access to economic opportunities. Leaving the camp immediately exposes them to the risk of violence. The majority of people in the camps are women and children, and many of the young children have now spent a large part of their lives living there. 

Darfur is home to the world's largest humanitarian operation but it is also one of the world’s most dangerous places. Aid agencies’ life-saving work is increasingly threatened by the ongoing violence and growing lawlessness. As the conflict has become more complex and countless different armed groups have emerged, humanitarian workers have become targets. Despite the daily dangers, Oxfam staff are providing vital help to around 530,000 people affected by the crisis – over 435,000 people in Darfur and 95,000 people in Chad.

Oxfam in Darfur

Our programs are designed to keep people healthy and reduce disease and to help people maintain their basic human dignity.


Collecting water in D'jabal Camp in eastern Chad. Oxfam is delivering safe, clean drinking water to people living in the camps. Photo: Pablo Tosco/Oxfam

Providing clean water

We have been able to deliver clean drinking water by drilling hundreds of boreholes, and constructing pumps and tap-stands that communities can easily operate and maintain themselves. Over the past year, we have been providing clean and safe drinking water to more than 400,000 displaced people living in camps across Darfur. Each person has been provided with an average of 11.5 litres of water each day.

Improving sanitation

This is being achieved through building latrines and washing facilities; distributing essential items such as soap, buckets and jerry cans for carrying water; and organising community clean-up campaigns in the camps and villages. Across Darfur, 435,000 people now have access to adequate sanitary facilities, including latrines and washing facilities.       

Promoting public health

We have trained hundreds of community volunteers to educate others about sanitation and personal hygiene; recruit attendants from within the camps' communities; keep toilets and washing facilities clean; and make sure water sources are protected. Over the past year, these volunteers have made more than 10,000 home visits across North Darfur to promote good hygiene practices,


Mud and water being mixed with animal dung ready for brick making, an activity being taught as part of Oxfam's livelihoods program in Kalma camp, near Nyala. Photo: Jane Beesley/Oxfam

Rebuilding livelihoods

People in the camps have lost their livelihoods as they cannot access their fields or trade in the markets without risk of being attacked. Oxfam is providing people with skills and opportunities to gain an income and reduce the dependency on external aid by training plumbers, welders, builders, vets and carpenters and by distributing seeds, tools and ploughs in areas where they can be used. We have also distributed donkeys and animals.

Looking to the future

Oxfam plans to provide humanitarian assistance to displaced people in Darfur and Chad for the foreseeable future. Two million people are likely to remain in the camps for some time to come. The international community must do more to bring about three key changes that will improve the lives of civilians. We are calling for: