Building for the future in Northern Darfur

These pages are retained for archive information only. They will remain on this website as information here is linked from other websites, but for the current situation in Darfur please view our most recent reports.

Practical Action Sudan has worked in Darfur for over 15 years. Its programmes aim to increase security for a people often faced by drought and tribal clashes. Now, with insecurity escalating, what can be done to secure a peaceful and sustainable future?

Reports on this page

Solutions that support a peaceful future ITDGPractical Action is working to tackle the issue of conflict through a number of technical solutions

Emergency strategies at work ITDGPractical Action is still committed to delivering sustainable, workable solutions, but the new context of insecurity has dictated new strategies for working with target communities

Hope for the harvest Agriculture will suffer unless a contingency plan is not implemented

Reports on other pages

The human situation in Northern Darfur A ground-based survey by ITDGPractical Action shows systematic destruction of people’s possessions and food stocks

The history and causes of the conflict Conflicts in Darfur are historically over natural resources, when rainfall and food are scarce

Deserted markets tell a story Mohamed Majzoub, director of ITDGPractical Action Sudan, reports from El Fashir in Northern Darfur

Insecurity threatens Darfur’s fragile infrastructure The security situation is still gloomy for those displaced, and there is little chance of returning home soon

Sustainability goes up in smoke A sad example of the effect of conflict on sustainable development interventions

Special appeal for Sudan ITDGPractical Action has launched a Special Appeal for Sudan. We need to raise £150,000 to ensure long-term food security for as many people affected by the fighting as we can, right now.

News from Darfur Links to the latest news on the situation in Darfur, information resources, and ITDGPractical Action projects in Sudan.

Solutions that support a peaceful future

ITDGPractical Action's long-term experience in the Darfur region means that our staff are familiar with the land and the people. We have come to understand which places lack water or pasture land, where the boundaries between one tribe and another meet and how people cope with conflict in their own cultural ways. ITDGPractical Action is now working to tackle the issue of conflict through a number of technical solutions that we hope will help to reduce this, and future conflicts over natural resources.

Water	Water is a critical resource in Darfur. It's therefore one of the major resources that people fight over. Providing more water at carefully selected sites will help to reduce conflict over water.
Pasture land	Limited natural pastures also cause conflict. One solution is reclaiming more pasture land by building dams to enhance flooding over wide areas. This will increase the size and fertility of pasture lands. Pastures can also be improved by introducing fodders into the area and spreading selected seeds that produce palatable, highly nutritious plants. This will ensure availability of more fodder for grazing animals.
Crop invasions	All of the conflict between animal herders and farmers is due to the invasions of animals into farms before the crops are harvested. One of the suggested solutions by mediators, including Government representatives, is to specify a date by which farmers should harvest their crops. This is not a straightforward solution, but ITDGPractical Action is working to help farmers harvest their crops early by providing early maturing varieties of seeds and introducing simple, efficient and affordable harvesting machinery.
Cultural change	People in Darfur are currently singing traditional war songs that are very much motivating people to fight. In such songs, the perfect man is one who can kill many people unaided. To challenge this stereotype, new songs and plays are being developed that portray a good man as a man of wisdom, who uses his mind and not his muscles, and solves other people's problems, including disputes. These songs and plays encourage peace rather than fighting.
Disaster preparation	An important intervention is to train communities on disaster preparedness and management, and build their capacities to respond to the needs of people affected by conflict.

Coping in crisis: emergency strategies at work

An old man is pushed along in a wheelbarrow

ITDGPractical Action's work in North Darfur has been affected by the conflict in the area and also challenged by it. We are still committed to delivering sustainable, workable solutions but the new context of insecurity has dictated new strategies for working with our target communities.

The need for a response to food and non-food emergencies, such as energy, transport and housing, has been identified as particularly important. As a result ITDGPractical Action is currently developing projects in the following areas:

Transport

People escaping the fighting have faced a severe transport shortage. Their camels and horses have been looted leaving most to walk long distances to safety. Some have been able to ride on donkeys, but even donkeys are scarce. Older people unable to make the journey on foot have been left to face their destiny. The lucky ones get access to wheelbarrows. ITDGPractical Action is currently working to provide intermediate means of transport such as donkey carts and wheelbarrows, and to improve donkey packs so that these remaining animals can carry more supplies.

Housing

Fighting has led to the burning of hundreds of villages. Rebuilding them requires raw materials, but North Darfur has poor vegetation and is known for its dryness at the best of times. Wood and straw, the common building materials, are either unavailable or very scarce. There is a need to introduce and promote new ways of building homes that require little or no wood and straw, such as using clay. ITDGPractical Action is currently investigating this issue.

Agriculture

Efforts are being made to asses and respond to people's needs with regard to the next agricultural season. If farming inputs such as tools and seeds are not secured by the end of June at the latest, there is a high risk that the season will fail and there will be no harvest. This is a critical issue that could broaden the scope of the disaster. Without the harvest, food relief will be needed for the next 18 months until the next harvest, assuming it is successful next year. ITDGPractical Action is building and digging terraces in time for the rains to catch and utilize even a scare rainfall and encourage crop growth.

Capacity building

The current situation has meant that a lot of local communities are hosting displaced people forced to leave their own homes. The local communities are using whatever resources they have and sharing them with the displaced who come in to their areas. This has had a tremendous impact on relieving the suffering of these people. ITDGPractical Action is building on this experience and has developed a programme to build Community Based Organizations that are better able to manage disaster and have the capacity to host displaced people who have fled their own homes.

ITDGPractical Action is organizing a lot of training in El Fashir town for representatives from the local communities. The training is designed to capacity-build people, giving them more authority over projects in their area and less dependence on ITDGPractical Action staff. This strategy has been forced into place by the area's insecurity as ITDGPractical Action staff may have to be evacuated. It is an exercise in emergency exit strategies that will be a learning process for all involved. On the positive side, if the methodology proves successful, it will lead to greater emergency preparedness by ITDGPractical Action in the future.

Najeeb Fadullaha,
Acting Infrastructure Services Team Leader, ITDGPractical Action Sudan

Hope for the harvest

by Nimat Adam Ahmadi, former ITDGPractical Action Darfur staff

The current conflict in Darfur has devastated villages and infrastructure throughout the area. Many farmers have lost their properties and 75% of them have fled their villages and farms. This exodus can only have a negative impact on food security for the state and agriculture will suffer this year and next if a contingency plan is not implemented.

A successful agricultural season this year is dependent on the following criteria and practices:

Providing agricultural equipment

Repatriating displaced people and ensuring their security

Providing improved seeds, particularly early maturing varieties

Rehabilitating sentinel sites, water stations and health centres so that farmers feel secure

Providing adequate supplies before the rainy season to avoid logistics difficulties during the rains

Expanding cultivated areas which are easy to access to compensate for inaccessible areas in the north

Developing irrigation technology, cultivation techniques and early maturing seeds to increase productivity

Below: Before the conflict - women farmers showing off their harvest in better days

Intermediate Technology Development Group Sudan
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