More than 5,000 pupils (2,306 girls and 2,735 boys) of the internally displaced persons in South Sudan’s Wau state have gotten a temporary learning space, according to Humanitarian Bulletin.
The report notes scholastic materials, including exercise books, have also been distributed to the school children. More teachers have been recruited as the number of pupils has increased. The Temporary Learning Space (TLS) has two shifts in a day; morning and afternoon.
The bulletin, according to findings from a head count exercise concluded on 22 October, notes that the existence of more than 39,600 internally displaced people (IDP) in Wau town. This includes 28,520 IDPs in the protected area next to UNMISS, 7,656 in ‘Cathedral’, 1,225 in Nazareth, 1,311 in Lokoloko, 751 in St. Joseph Church, and 214 in South Sudan Red Cross compound.
It pointed out that nearly 83 per cent of the IDP population in the protected area and other collective sites are women and children. Congestion and living conditions in the collective sites remain a major public health concern due to increased cases of acute watery diarrhoea and respiratory tract infections. The Wau protected area is the most congested Protection of Civilians (PoC) site in the country, with more than 28,520 IDPs sheltering on just 134,514 m2 of land.
Aid agencies, it said, are therefore scaling up operations to respond to the needs of the increasing number of people sheltering in the protected area. Construction of a new health clinic is on-going. A general food distribution to IDPs in all the collective sites was kicked off on 31 October, along with a nutrition programme for pregnant and lactating mothers. Partners are exploring options to ensure that IDPs have continued access to clean water following reports of the increased cost of water trucking to IDPs in the PoC site.
It adds that partners have extended their support beyond collective sites and are continuing to support service delivery throughout Wau town. Over 50 boreholes, according to the humanitarian bulletin, have been repaired in Wau town and additional boreholes have been identified for repair, with technical assessments underway. Nutrition support is ongoing through five outpatient therapeutic programme (OTP) sites, including Lokoloko Primary Health Care Centre and Wau Teaching Hospital. Partners are also supporting health facilities, including Wau Teaching Hospital and county health departments with medical supplies and technical support.