Providing Clean Water to Families Fleeing Violence in Central Darfur

Triangle Generation Humanitaire and community members worked together to build more than 1,150 emergency latrines. / Triangle Génération Humanitaire

“We just ask Allah: When will we be able to stay in one place and not be scared?” The words of Mohammed Omer, a 58-year-old unemployed farmer, echoed throughout the Sudanese village of Ammar Jaded in Central Darfur.

Mohammed didn’t always live in Ammar Jaded. He was a farmer, harvesting and selling his crops in the local markets of Dar El-Salam, where he lived with his two wives and 14 children. But when Mohammed’s village was raided and torn apart amid increasing tribal conflict, his family and thousands of others were forced to flee.

Mohammed and his family fled to Um Dukhun, another town in Central Darfur. But shortly after, Um Dukhun was also attacked by armed men. They looted the homes and set them on fire, leaving behind a path of destruction. Once again, Mohammed and his family were forced to uproot their lives.

Mohammed is now settled in Ammar Jaded, where he and thousands of others hope that they have found a safe and stable place to stay.

Mohammed talks of the struggle of continuously relocating his family due to the conflict between two tribes. “My kids now have no education, and we have lost everything: our cattle, our home, our land. All of this and we don’t even know what they are fighting about. What is the reason?”

In places like Sudan where the frontlines of the conflict are fluid and humanitarian needs are continually changing, USAID supports Rapid Response Funds to quickly address emerging needs. Through this fund, the International Organization for Migration in Sudan and Triangle Generation Humanitaire were able to bring clean water and sanitation practices to Ammar Jaded.

New wells like this one provide clean water to more than 29,000 people in Central Sudan. / Triangle Generation Humanitaire

Triangle Génération Humanitaire built more than 1,150 emergency latrines and dozens of handwashing stations, organized hygiene promotion campaigns, and distributed more than 1,000 hygiene kits. Campaigns to clear garbage were organized for thousands of people, and garbage collection dustbins were distributed throughout the villages.

To provide clean water for more than 29,000 people in Central Sudan, Triangle Generation Humanitaire also restored seven existing water points and constructed three new wells.

As a result of the tribal conflicts, more than 1.7 million people have been forced from their homes, leaving behind their land and cattle — along with their hopes for a brighter future. Mohammed explains his day-to-day struggle to take care of his children.

“Sometimes they eat, sometimes they don’t,” he says. “We used to drink very brown water before. My kids would get sicker and sicker, and I could not do anything about it because I have nothing left.”

But Mohammed says he was grateful even for the brown water because people in the outskirts of the village did not have access to water at all; they would dig underground near the dried up wells with the hope of finding water sources.

“For them, it was really bad. They would walk for 90 minutes to come further into the village to drink the dirty water. Now, thanks to this [Rapid Response Fund], everyone has access to clean, safe water, and [in] less than 15 minutes walking.”