Caritas South Sudan Reaches Out to Hundreds of Households from War-Torn Sudan

The Caritas office targeted 100 households who the official said are “extremely vulnerable.”

The households have been provided with assorted food items including sorghum, cooking oil, lentils, and sugar, the Humanitarian Coordinator of Caritas South Sudan said.

Caritas South Sudan distributing food items to returnees in South Sudan's Renk County. Credit: Joseph Sabu, Caritas South Sudan

Sabu however lamented that the needs of the vulnerable are many compared to the available resources, explaining, “The demand is huge. Many households are vulnerable; they need assistance but we cannot reach all of them.” 

He continued, “We do what we can and that has given us a lot of work because we really need to identify the extremely vulnerable individuals because the level of vulnerability is not the same. Some people could cope but others are extremely vulnerable.”

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The Caritas South Sudan official said, “We have very good outreach through our catechists in the residential areas. We look at the household status, health of the individual, aspect of disability, status of women who are pregnant and lactating, and enroll them for assistance.”

He expressed appreciation to the Parish Priest of Christ the King Renk Parish of Malakal Diocese, Fr. Akile Kamilo, Mons. Roko Taban, Fr. Michael Kiragu, and Fr. Peter Othow who he said are on the ground to help with the coordination of the emergency response.

In the September 27 interview, Sabu said that the situation of those fleeing the war that broke out between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is “not good”.

Joseph Sabu Pasquale, Caritas South Sudan Humanitarian Coordinator in his office in Juba. Credit: ACI Africa

“Imagine a situation where people had stable incomes then all of a sudden, they are forced to leave everything behind, only fleeing with their lives,” Sabu said, and added, “The returnees are going through hard times. People are suffering. The transit center is full. And people are standing outside the center that also has the problem of sanitation.”

Sabu appealed to humanitarian agencies to reach out to the vulnerable and to ensure that “they at least live a dignified life.”

He urged the warring parties in the Sudan conflict to “cease their confrontations and to accept peace for the Sudanese people to live a decent life.” 

Kerbino Kuel Deng is a South Sudanese journalist who is passionate about Church communication. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.