VZCZCXRO6217
OO RUEHROV RUEHTRO
DE RUEHKH #0128 0241433
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O R 241432Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0057
INFO IGAD COLLECTIVE
UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 000128 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
NSC FOR MGAVIN, LETIM 
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN 
ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID PGOV PREL SU
SUBJECT: HUMANITARIAN COORDINATOR LANZER URGES SHIFT FROM RELIEF TO 
RECOVERY IN DARFUR 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: In a January 20 meeting with CDA, UN Deputy 
Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Toby Lanzer urged that the 
international community start shifting its focus in Darfur from 
humanitarian relief to recovery efforts. Noting the decrease in 
overall violence in Darfur over the past several years, he asserted 
that development planning must commence immediately if a "peace 
dividend" from an eventual political settlement is to be realized. 
End Summary. 
 
 
 
¶2. (SBU) On January 20, CDA met with Toby Lanzer, UN Deputy 
Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for northern Sudan.  Citing 
monthly statistics compiled by the African Union High Level Panel 
on Darfur (AUPD), Lanzer described the dramatic decrease in both 
the volume and volatility of fatalities there. While acknowledging 
that the security situation remains unpredictable, he argued that 
the international community ought to make use of these improved 
conditions to begin planning for development. "If and when a peace 
deal is reached, the people will look to the UN and international 
community for a peace dividend," he said. If the rewards of peace 
are to be quickly realized, planning must begin now, he added. 
 
 
 
¶3. (SBU) When planning for recovery efforts in Darfur, Lanzer urged 
that the donor community work closely with Darfur's three state 
governments to better understand their capabilities and coordinate 
development efforts. Such engagement would dispel the Government of 
Sudan (GOS)'s notion that the international community is focused 
solely on humanitarian relief, he said, noting that "if we show the 
GOS some goodwill on the planning stages for recovery, I believe 
they will take it seriously." A commitment to development could 
leverage the GOS to take control of the security situation, commit 
funding and resources towards development, and decentralize power 
over regional and local issues, he said. 
 
 
 
¶4. (SBU) One of the largest challenges to relief and recovery 
efforts in Darfur is the proliferation of its Internally Displaced 
Persons (IDP) camps, said Lanzer. Most camps are now "peri-urban" 
with electricity, water and sanitation, schools and jobs, giving 
little disincentive for IDPs to return to remote villages which 
have none of those services. "It's very difficult for me to 
envision more than one third of IDPs returning home," he said. "I'm 
afraid we created a generation of dependency that is 
unsustainable." 
 
 
 
¶5. (SBU) In order to wean IDP residents from a lifetime of 
dependency, Lanzer listed a number of small steps to be taken 
without forcing the IDPs out of camps. Noting that over 70% of all 
inflow to Darfur is food or food-related, Lanzer urged that the 
World Food Programme (WFP) change its profile: instead of 
continually providing handouts with no strings attached, he urged 
that WFP instead explore food for work programs, food plus vouchers 
that could be used on the local economy, or other such variations. 
The donor community cannot provide handouts forever, he said. 
 
 
 
¶6. (SBU) Comment: While the security situation remains 
unpredictable, there is no doubt that violence in Darfur has abated 
significantly. Furthermore, the humanitarian disaster that many 
predicted following the March 2009 expulsion of thirteen of the 
largest INGOs failed to materialize, as Lanzer pointed out. As the 
world focuses attention on the tragedy unfolding in Haiti, where 
humanitarian aid is a matter of life and death, improvements on the 
ground in Darfur may permit gradual movement in the opposite 
direction, moving from humanitarian relief to early recovery 
efforts that may offer the best hope for transforming this 
beleaguered region. End Comment. 
WHITEHEAD