JUBA, June 17– South Sudan and the United Nations (UN) have reaffirmed their commitment to ending protracted displacement for at least 60,000 South Sudanese by the end of 2026.
At the second Durable Solutions Steering Committee meeting in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, on Tuesday, ministers, state authorities and UN officials said that while local progress is being made, the broader pace and scale of recovery still depend heavily on stability, land availability and access to essential services.
Albino Akol Atak, minister of humanitarian affairs and disaster management, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to advancing the durable solutions agenda, including establishing safe and voluntary conditions for return and reintegration, while closely monitoring progress.
“For every South Sudanese family still living in protracted displacement, every year of delay is another year of lives put on hold,” Akol said in a joint statement issued on Tuesday evening.
In 2026, South Sudan faces a significant internal displacement crisis affecting over 2.5 million people, including 964,000 living in camps and designated sites, the UN said.
It said the protracted crisis stems from the 2013 conflict but has been severely worsened by recurring floods and climate shocks. According to the UN, the ongoing conflict in neighboring Sudan has further compounded the emergency by driving more than 1.3 million refugees and returnees across the border into South Sudan since 2023.
Supported by the government, the UN and its partners, more than 28,000 formerly displaced people have returned, reintegrated or resettled across Unity State, Upper Nile and Western Bahr el Ghazal, where local conditions permit, the UN said. (Namibia Daily News / Xinhua)
