VZCZCXRO6596
OO RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #1646/01 1931249
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 121249Z JUL 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3669
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 001646 
 
SIPDIS 
 
AIDAC 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF/SPG, PRM, AND ALSO PASS USAID/W 
USAID FOR DCHA SUDAN TEAM, AFR/SP 
NAIROBI FOR USAID/DCHA/OFDA, USAID/REDSO, AND FAS 
USMISSION UN ROME 
GENEVA FOR NKYLOH 
NAIROBI FOR SFO 
NSC FOR JBRAUSE, NSC/AFRICA FOR TSHORTLEY 
USUN FOR TMALY 
BRUSSELS FOR PLERNER 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: EAID PREF PGOV PHUM SOCI SU
SUBJECT:  Darfur - Shelter and Settlements Assessment 
 
------------------- 
Summary and Comment 
------------------- 
 
¶1.  The conflict in Darfur has significantly altered the region's 
settlement system.  A majority of internally displaced persons 
(IDPs) has been settled for up to three years; however, small-scale 
returns are ongoing and new incidents of displacement continue. 
These factors necessitate that the humanitarian community move away 
from the principal approach to shelter assistance that has been 
implemented to date.  From May 6 to 18, 2006, the USAID Office of 
U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA) Shelter and 
Settlements Advisor traveled to North and South Darfur to assess 
shelter and settlement conditions and monitor USAID/OFDA-funded 
shelter projects.  The assessment revealed that a misapplication or 
lack of application of basic shelter assessment methods and 
beneficiary selection criteria continues to plague the sector. 
Recommendations for improving programs include viewing plastic 
sheeting as an input to more durable shelter solutions and 
complementing this with other inputs, such as improved 
fuel-efficient stoves, as part of an upgraded shelter package.  End 
summary and comment. 
 
--------------------- 
Assessment Activities 
--------------------- 
 
¶2.  USAID/OFDA supports shelter projects implemented by two 
non-governmental organization (NGO) partners, CHF International and 
Catholic Relief Services (CRS), in the three Darfur States.  The 
projects total approximately USD 2.8 million and provide shelter 
support to an estimated 20,000 beneficiaries living in three 
distinct environments:  camps, host communities, and rural areas. 
Although modest in scope, these projects are, strictly speaking, the 
only two specific shelter projects in Darfur.  Other NGO partners 
provide a form of shelter assistance through the provision of 
plastic sheeting and other inputs as part of emergency relief item 
packages; however, these activities should not be considered focused 
shelter projects because the sheeting is often used for other 
purposes, such as fencing, drying mats, and covering food. 
 
¶3.  From May 6 to 18, 2006, the USAID/OFDA Shelter and Settlements 
Advisor traveled to North and South Darfur to assess shelter and 
settlement conditions and monitor USAID/OFDA-funded shelter 
projects.  During this period, the Shelter and Settlements Advisor 
met with USAID/Sudan and USAID/Darfur Field Office (DFO) staff, 
implementing partners and other relief organizations, UN agencies, 
and the Sudanese Humanitarian Affairs Commission.  The Shelter and 
Settlements Advisor and USAID/DFO staff visited several project 
sites, including Otash, Dereig, Kalma, and Bilel IDP camps in South 
Darfur and Abu Shouk, Al Salaam, and Zam Zam IDP camps in North 
Darfur.  The Shelter and Settlements Advisor also traveled to 
Kabkabiya, a host community approximately 140 kilometers west of El 
Fasher to assess shelter and settlements conditions in the city, as 
well as accessible villages in outlying rural areas.  IDPs in all 
locations visited expressed views on shelter conditions, prospects 
for returns, and related issues.  Due to security concerns, the 
Shelter and Settlements Advisor did not assess shelter conditions in 
West Darfur, but did meet with CRS in Khartoum to discuss project 
activities in and near El Geneina. 
 
---------------------------------------- 
Settlement System Changes and Challenges 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  The conflict in Darfur has significantly altered the region's 
settlement system.  Hundreds of rural settlements have been 
destroyed, and large numbers of people have moved closer to larger 
towns and cities.  The three Darfur state capitals have experienced 
enormous population growth, with El Fasher increasing by 300 percent 
in just three years. 
 
¶5.  Challenges to the provision of shelter assistance in Darfur 
include the harsh environment, long supply lines, and 
government-imposed obstacles.  There is also a limited sense of a 
shelter sector in Darfur.  No weekly shelter sector coordination 
meetings occur, no lead agency on shelter exists, and only two NGOs 
are recognized as having significant shelter sector capacity (CRS in 
West Darfur and CHF in South and North Darfur). 
 
¶6.  A further complication is that basic assessment methods and 
beneficiary selection criteria are often misapplied or not applied; 
 
KHARTOUM 00001646  002 OF 002 
 
 
for example, needs have not always been recognized and the most 
vulnerable have not always been the beneficiaries of assistance. 
This practice has been widespread, particularly regarding the use of 
plastic sheeting.  Shelter is often perceived as the provision of 
plastic sheeting, which is subsumed as part of a relief commodity 
package.  However, because shelter requirements are not part of 
commodity needs assessments, no guarantee exists that sheeting will 
be used for the intended purpose of constructing some form of 
shelter. 
 
¶7.  Given the onset of the rainy season, a major concern is 
distribution of plastic sheeting.  Based on field assessments, 
however, additional mass-volume distributions of sheeting are not 
required.  Many IDPs are already using one sheet and have one, two, 
or even three sheets in storage, implying that the humanitarian 
community may have over-resourced plastic sheeting.  In addition, an 
impressive and dynamic black market for plastic sheeting has 
emerged, another sign that sheeting is readily available and that 
sheeting is not always being incorporated into shelter projects. 
 
-------------- 
Shelter Inputs 
-------------- 
 
¶8.  Because the Darfur settlement system has been greatly altered by 
conflict and the majority of IDPs has been settled in camps or host 
communities for up to three years, their needs are different from 
newly displaced or recently returned populations.  Despite this, 
commodity distributions continue to feature one-size-fits-all 
packages that have become increasingly irrelevant to the needs of 
settled IDP populations.  To date, plastic sheeting has been 
included as an item in a non-food item package, subject to annual 
replenishment.  Viewing sheeting as an input to a durable shelter 
solution, however, would improve existing shelter conditions and 
serve as the basis of a shelter package that might permit a more 
effective transition to permanent shelter in the event that returns 
are possible.  Interviews with IDPs revealed that many who had begun 
to construct mud-brick houses did so solely to improve miserable 
living conditions and not because they intended to stay in their 
current locations. 
 
¶9.  IDP camps in Darfur are densely populated and made almost 
entirely of highly flammable building materials such as straw.  Any 
measure intended to enclose open cooking fires, like fuel-efficient 
stove use, should be promoted as a fire prevention measure. 
Fuel-efficient stoves are also an input that can improve public 
health, mitigate environmental impacts associated with fuel wood 
collection, generate livelihoods, and provide economic benefits to 
consumers.  In addition, the introduction of metal fuel-efficient 
stove production would involve men as a new beneficiary group and 
result in more durable stoves that are capable of being moved in the 
event of returns. 
 
--------------- 
Shelter Package 
--------------- 
 
¶10.  Designing a durable, low-cost package of shelter assistance is 
possible and recommended.  This upgraded shelter package could be 
applied rapidly to enhance current living conditions considerably 
and contribute to the transition back to villages of origin in the 
event that returns occur.  The package would include local materials 
like poles and millet straw to expand and cover living space, an 
improved fuel-efficient stove, a treated mosquito net, and plastic 
sheeting when necessary to be placed under the straw for a more 
durable and effective roof.  This package would greatly enhance the 
quality of shelter conditions in the extremely harsh environment of 
Darfur and should be provided consistent with sound assessment 
practices.  More appropriate use of plastic sheeting will greatly 
improve shelter conditions, as covering the sheeting with straw will 
reduce internal air temperatures and ultraviolet degradation, 
thereby extending the effective life of the plastic.  The package 
would also provide an alternative to the pervasive practice of 
improving shelter conditions through construction of mud-brick 
houses in and out of camp settings, which consume vast quantities of 
scarce and costly water resources. 
 
HUME