VZCZCXRO3440
RR RUEHROV RUEHTRO
DE RUEHKH #1086/01 2671359
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 241359Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4462
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 001086 
 
NSC FOR MGAVIN, LETIM 
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN 
ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO MOPS UNSC SU
SUBJECT: DDR Reintegration Component Faces USD 35 Million Shortfall 
 
¶1.  Summary:  Basil Massey, UNDP Demobilization, Decommissioning and 
Reintegration (DDR) Program Manager for Sudan told Charge on August 
27 that Blue Nile State had completed disarmament, demobilization 
and reintegration (DDR) for more than 5,000 Southern People's 
Liberation Army (SPLA) soldiers.  Ongoing DDR for the 4,000 SPLA 
soldiers whose homes are in the Nuba Mountains will eliminate 
ceasefire violations in that area.  More weapons are being turned in 
than anticipated, and 80 percent of these are in working order.  The 
Government of Southern Sudan must demobilize an additional 34,000 
SPLA soldiers this year.  However, meeting DDR challenges will be 
difficult;  the reintegration component of the DDR program for the 
South faces a USD 35 million (approximately 87.5 million SDG) 
shortfall.  The Government of Southern Sudan's operational budget is 
also insufficient.  End Summary. 
 
¶2.  Although DDR, one of the main pillars of the Comprehensive Peace 
Agreement (CPA), has suffered numerous delays, with the February 
launch of the program in Blue Nile State, a renewed sense of 
partnership among  the GNU, the GOSS and the UN has emerged, Massey 
said. 
 
---------------------------- 
Blue Nile State Completed DDR 
----------------------------- 
 
¶3.  It was a significant step forward when the GNU and GoSS agreed 
on DDR modalities for the Three Areas, especially in light of 
governance issues in those states, he said.  The DDR process in Blue 
Nile State is now completed, with more than 5,000 soldiers 
demobilized.  Governor Agar, at first skeptical, has been won over, 
Massey said. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
DDR In Kordofan To Address Ceasefire Violations 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶4.  In South Kordofan, Governor Haroun is currently working to 
demobilize both the SPLA and the SAF.  However, South Kordofan 
remains tense.  The CPA calls for the SPLA forces to deploy south of 
the provisional border set at the January 1, 1956 line of 
demarcation.  However, more than 4,000 SPLA troops in South Kordofan 
are indigenously Nuban, and will continue to live in the area. 
Therefore, the only way to reduce ceasefire violations is to 
demobilize all the troops.  Over 1,200 have already been 
demobilized, and an additional 3,000 have been identified for 
demobilization.  Once demobilization occurs, the individual is no 
longer part of the Southern People's Liberation Army (SPLA); any 
violence that does occur, although regrettable, will not be a 
violation of the ceasefire, Massey said. 
 
------------------------------------ 
More Weapons Turned In Than Expected 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶5.  Massey said there is lots of enthusiasm on the ground for the 
program.  Many more Rocket-Propelled Grenades (RPG), machine guns, 
mortars and small caliber guns are being brought in than were 
anticipated.  In southern Blue Nile province, for example, Massey 
expected approximately 700 weapons to be turned in; instead, the 
program received more than 1,300 weapons.  In addition,  80 percent 
of all the weapons turned in were functional.  A survey done by 
Human Rights Watch shows that the country is awash with weapons, 
Massey said.  Although the broader community security issues will 
not be addressed until the police and courts function as they 
should, the DDR program is making a major contribution to peace and 
security in areas in which even women and children have been killed. 
 The DDR program does not deal directly with other armed groups, 
Massey said in response to a question; only those militias that have 
been incorporated into the SPLA will benefit. 
 
---------------------------------- 
35 Million Needed for DDR in South 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  Despite the recent positive developments, the DDR program faces 
urgent challenges in the south.  As a result of the drop in oil 
prices and other fiscal pressures, the SPLA cannot pay salaries, and 
has announced that it must  demobilize 36,000 SPLA soldiers over the 
course of the year. When all are demobilized, the South will save 
approximately 18 million SDG per year as a result, Massey said. 
However, only 2,000 soldiers have been demobilized to date, and 
there is a shortfall in funding for the reintegration program of USD 
35 million (approx SDG 87.5 million.)  Without reintegration 
support, there is a substantial risk that demobilized troops will 
become a threat to the communities in which they live, Massey said, 
because they will have no access to livelihood opportunities.  Not 
only will they suffer severe hardships, but also the impoverished 
 
KHARTOUM 00001086  002 OF 002 
 
 
soldiers could turn to violence and banditry.  The resulting 
instability may  undermine the prospects for peaceful elections in 
2010, he said. In addition, the GNU and GoSS are struggling to cover 
the operational and staffing costs of the DDR program, which total 
about USD 45 million (approximately SDG 1.1 billion.) 
 
¶7. Charge told UNDP that neither the Department of Defense nor USAID 
funds DDR programs here; the Department of State through the Pol-Mil 
and geographic bureaus covers DDR via funding to international 
organizations.  As a matter of policy, the United States normally 
does not contribute, as other countries do, to pooled trust funds. 
And, because the Joint Integrated Units (JIUs) include soldiers from 
the North as well as the SPLA, U.S. sanctions prevent the United 
States from dealing with them.  Massey noted that he understood that 
the United States funded contractors and NGOs directly to provide 
livelihood packages as part of the Afghanistan DDR program. 
 
------------------------------------ 
DDR Roundtable To Be Held in October 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶8.  The North and the South are managing DDR as a partnership, 
Massey said.  A DDR roundtable is held every six months, with the 
third scheduled for October, under the auspices of the National DDR 
Coordinator General Balu.  Second Vice President Taha will attend, 
as will senior U.N. security staff. 
 
WHITEHEAD