The coordinator of the South Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (SSRRC) in Koch County in Unity said has said that an estimated 8,000 flood-displaced people last week started receiving relief food items from an international humanitarian agency.
Earlier in October, the local authorities in Koch County reported the displacement of over 4,000 households, or the equivalent of 10,000 individuals by floods in parts of the county.
The SSRRC’s Ruot Riak told Radio Tamazuj over the weekend that at least 8,300 displaced individuals started receiving food assistance from the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) last week.
“The organization that donated food to the Internally Displaced People (IDPs) in Koch County of Unity state is called Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC),” he said.
Riak said the findings of a recent joint humanitarian needs assessment are yet to be submitted to the UN.
“The assessment we did is still with World Relief (WR) and will be submitted to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA),” he said.
Meanwhile, Angelina Nyagai, a displaced person, confirmed receiving food rations for August, September, and October and thanked NRC for the timely intervention.
“Every person in a household gets 3 kilograms of sorghum and one bottle of cooking oil,” she said. “The food given to us is enough, and we want to appreciate the Norwegian Refugee Council for their support.”
Nyagai appealed to humanitarian agencies to assist them with some non-food items to protect them from the elements.
“We also need some tarpaulin because our children are suffering in the cold here,” she added.
For its part, NRC says they distribute 7.5kg of food per individual in a household.
UPDATE: This story was updated at 1:11 pm, 08/11/2022, with a comment from NRC.