1. HIGHLIGHTS   
2. SECURITY/ACCESS   
3. LOGISTICS GENERAL
4. EMERGENCY SHELTER/NON-FOOD ITEMS   
5. SURFACE TRANSPORT   
6. AIR OPERATIONS
7. RIVER TRANSPORT
8. FUEL   

1. HIGHLIGHTS

Inaccessibility Continues in Darfur:  The current downward spiral in insecurity in Darfur has continued in November, especially this month in North and West Darfur. This has resulted in decreased NFI distributions across the region. Lowered capacity to deliver humanitarian aid has affected the entire international community and the populations it serves, with attacks increasing also on members of the international community with looting of assets.

2. SECURITY/ACCESS

Continuing Insecurity: Incidents of ambushing of commercial and humanitarian vehicles in all regions of Darfur have increased over the reporting period. OCHA's latest map of humanitarian access in Darfur shows increasing inaccessibility. See the HIC website -  and click on Humanitarian Access New! For the latest Darfur Humanitarian Access map (24 Sep 06). Tribal clashes, particularly in South Darfur, military build up and related incidents in North and West Darfur and an increase in hostilities and tension in camps continuing throughout all three states, have been reported. With the increase in military attacks in some regions, reports of displacements and re-displacements are increasing, with IDPs finding themselves in increasing need of emergency NFIs and other humanitarian supplies due to decreasing coping mechanisms. Escalating military activity in Chad along the Sudanese border is also causing concern and has resulted in the evacuation of national and international NGO staff from Abu Shurug, Silea and Kulbus.              

North Darfur: Road categorisation is currently being reassessed due to a marked increase in insecurity in the region. Travel North of Kutum is being monitored, with travel from El Fasher to Kabkabiya being assessed on a case by case basis. Travel from el Fasher to Mellit Town is currently OK. 

South Darfur: Access to some camps in the region has further decreased over the reporting period, due to tribal conflict and military attacks. Areas of major security concern change constantly with reports of ensuing displacements. Massive displacements have been reported this month in Ed Daein due to military attacks. Others areas of concern are Sheria/Mahajaria, Jebel Marra and Saleah. Recent clashes between Arab militia resulted in the displacement of 6,000 people heading to Neem Camp in Ed Deain Town and 5,000 to Um Saun near the border with North Darfur.        

West Darfur: The security situation in camps around El Geneina (Dorti, Ardamata and Ryad) did improve slightly towards the beginning of the month  with an increase in a combined GOS and EU SIF police presence in Ardamata and Ryad. However the security situation is in constant flux and had dramatically worsened by mid-month. UNJLC will continue to look into the possibility therefore of utilising any temporary lull in security incidents to facilitate NFI distributions in the camps. UNJLC is investigating the possibility of an NFI  distribution in Dorti Camp as soon as the security situation allows.

South Sudan

Road Security:  All roads within the following boundaries have been reduced to UN Security Level 3 (Transitional) effective as of 24 November. Movements along these roads are permissible in convoys with armed escorts:
Juba - Mongala - Lafon - Torit - Amatong - Katire - Kit - Lobonok - Juba Bridge. All roads within the following boundaries have been placed under Security Level 3 until further notice (armed escort mandatory):
Torit - Tsertanya - along Sudan/Uganda border up to Lobonok. All roads east of line Lafon - Torit - Tsertanya within the ex Phase IV areas are at security Level 2.

• Juba Town (previously Level 1) has been raised to Security Level 2 (permissive)
• Juba - Yei Road. Security Level remains at Level 2.

Effective as of 18 November, Bunagok (Lakes State) is now classified as Level 4 (insecure) due to armed clashes in the area. Effective as of 10 November, Dor, Diel and Fangak  (Jonglei State) have been reduced to Level 2. 

The situation is currently stable following security incidents in Malakal and ensuing evacuations of some international staff. A driving curfew is currently in place in Juba from 2300 to dawn, with reported night patrols by local police and the SPLA (Sudan People's Liberation Army).    
Source: UNMIS Regional Security Southern Sudan (Juba)

Security Map: A map illustrating road restrictions in South Sudan may be acquired from the UNDSS office in Juba by e-mail: undss.southsudan@undp.org. 

3. LOGISTICS GENERAL

Sudan-Wide

UNJLC Logistics Coordination Meetings: UNJLC continues to hold regular logistics/NFI meetings in Juba, the Darfur capitals and Khartoum. In order to reflect UNJLC's new role as sector lead for the NFI and Emergency Shelter Sector for 2007, UNJLC now separates coordination meetings both in Khartoum and in the field into NFI and Logistics meetings. A monthly logistics coordination meeting in also held in Zalingei. All interested parties are encouraged to attend.

Due to the holiday season and the change in meeting structure, some meeting times and dates have yet to be finalised. For further information and details on these changes, please contact Julie Spooner on sudan@unjlc.org or the local UNJLC Logistics Officer.

The updated schedule for meetings finalised so far is:

• North Darfur - sudan.elfasher@unjlc.org
  
• South Darfur - sudan.nyala@unjlc.org
• West Darfur - sudan.elgeneina@unjlc.org
• South Sudan - sudan.juba@unjlc.org.  Paal Jannang - sudan.map@wfp.org, +249 912160261.  

Darfur

Logistics Situation: In November, regional insecurity and tension in camps increased, seriously affecting regular NFI distributions, with assessment and monitoring activities also negatively impacted across the region. Attacks on commercial and NGO vehicles have led to a further and significant decrease in accessibility.

South  Darfur

UNJLC in Zalingi: UNJLC has conducted a final  assessment in Zalingi regarding a semi-permanent presence there. All facilities for this to take place are now available, with WFP providing office space, the use of a car and accommodation, and Mercy Corps providing NFI storage facilities. OCHA will act as laision for all NFI requests. 

West  Darfur

NFI Assessments: CARE has begun its training for the upcoming NFI assessments in Ryad, Krindek 1 and Krindek 2 Camps. UNJLC was able to provide support in identifying staff working in these camps to receive CARE training to run the assessments. Once complete, the assessments will be used as a planning document for future NFI distributions.
  

South Sudan

Warehousing - Juba: The issue of insufficient warehousing in Juba continues to be looked into by UNJLC. Four companies have been identified, with costs currently being tentatively quoted at approximately US$20 per m3 per month. UNJLC is also looking at obtaining long-term contracts with the companies. The issue of allocation of land for warehousing has not yet been settled between the GOSS and Central Equatoria State authorities regarding which entity has the right to allocate land outside of Juba proper. The situation is being monitored by UNJLC.

GIS Training: GPS Road Assessment Trainings are being conducted to train partner organisations to map the roads in South Sudan. Interested organisations should contact sudan.map@unjlc.org. The GIS training for the Ministry of Transport is still in the planning phase. The target date is for early February but will depend on the availability of equipment, venue and training team.

Rest of Sudan

Logistics Planning for Organised Returns:  UNJLC continues its coordinating and planning role in the inter-agency/government Logistics Coordination Committee (LCC) operating under the joint government/UN plan for the organised return of IDPs to Southern Sudan and the Transitional Areas. The LCC is currently working on Logistic Operation plans for the various planned organised movements, expected to begin in January 2007. Members of the LCC include logistics officers and operational staff from UNMIS-RRR, IOM, WFP, UNICEF, CARE, ADRA, UNJLC and HAC/SSRRC.

4. EMERGENCY SHELTER & NON-FOOD ITEMS

Darfur

UNJLC Darfur NFI Coordinator:  Neil Barriskell is currently acting as Darfur NFI Coordinator for UNJLC and can be reached at Neil.barriskell@wfp.org, 0912172159.

Increasing Opportunities for Assessments and Distributions - Darfur: With increased insecurity severely hampering assessments and hence distributions, plans are ongoing within UNJLC to investigate and create further possibilities for increasing spot assessments in order to fully benefit from windows of opportunity when and should they arise. Distributions of NFIs and the ability to carry out assessments and monitoring activities have been decreased due to insecurity, with NFIs being distributed mostly to and through Community Projects.

Distribution of Common Pipeline NFIs: The following agencies reached 45,061 households with Common Pipeline NFIs in November: Bader, Bakhita, El-Ruhama, Fatma Elzahra, Save the Children (US), HelpAge, NOCD, Gadam El-Khair, Great Family, WEO, SDCO, Humedica, Samaritans, Solidarités, IRC, Sudan Red Crescent, Juvenile, Khawlla Bent Alazwar, Rayahin, ROD, Um-Sadam, Ashab Almarhama, WVI, Oxfam, Spanish Red Cross, ROD, HelpAge, WEO, Concern and TDH. The number of households served has more than doubled as compared to last month due mainly to a rapid response to the 'cold snap' with blankets and sleeping mats. The commodities were 82,658 blankets, 3,011 items of women's clothing, 5,682 pieces of plastic sheeting, 5,986 sleeping mats, 36,403 jerry cans and 3,491 pieces of sanitary material. The commodities were distributed to the following locations: South Darfur - Abu Ajura, Al Geer-Sereif, Billel, Dereig, Dito, Edd Al Fursan, Gereida, Jurof, Kalma, Kass Town, Katayla, Nyala Town, Otash, and Yassin. West Darfur - Mornei and Riyad.
The Darfur NFI Common Pipeline also supported community projects by providing items to rehabilitate latrines, to women's training centres and clinics.    
UNJLC is currently assisting IRC in the transportation of 6,462 cartons of laundry soap to Kass. Commercial trucks will be provided by CARE.
 
Distribution Reports:  Organisations distributing CP NFIs are reminded that they are required to complete Distribution Reports and submit them to UNJLC. 

Monitoring and Evaluation:  According to CARE's October NFI Monitoring Report, IDPs again voted plastic sheeting as the most useful NFI currently being distributed (85%), followed by jerry cans (45%) and sleeping mats (32%). Kitchen utensils were voted as the most urgently needed NFI (37%) not currently being distributed, followed by mosquito nets (17%).

The full report is available at http://www.unjlc.org/sudan/supply_chain/reports/monitoring.

NFI Common Pipeline Stocks as of 25 November 2006

 *The "Number of Households" column shows the projected number of households that could be covered with the total stock.   Please see the complete Darfur NFI Common Pipeline tracking document at http://www.unjlc.org/sudan/supply_chain/. 

Donations/Loans to the Common Pipeline: Organisations are reminded that if they donate NFIs to the CP, the CP will cover the cost of transportation from El Obeid to distribution points.  Agencies/NGOs can then access the NFI CP for distribution, if the target population meets CP standards. 

Other Pipelines: Information on other NFI pipelines and distributions is vital to ensure comprehensive coverage. All agencies are encouraged to contact Neil Barriskell at neil.barriskell@wfp.org with information on their NFI activities. 

North Darfur

Assessments: Mission assessments to many locations were postponed during the reporting period due to the lack of access.

South Darfur

Distributions: An emergency NFI distribution took place in Saleah Camp to IDPs following violence there end October. Solidarités distributed sanitary material, jerry cans and blankets from the Darfur Common Pipeline to 4,005 households. The distribution was carried out with the support and collaboration of Sheikhs following an emergency headcount. Supplementary NFIs were also distributed by Médecins Sans Frontières Holland. A further UNJLC/OCHA assessment has taken place to ascertain outstanding NFI requirements. UNJLC also conducted a final assessment in Zalingei with a view to UNJLC presence there. UNJLC also participated in a joint OCHA/IOM assessment in Um Dafur following reports of an influx of refugees from Central African Republic.     

West Darfur

Distribution of Blankets: In preparation for cold weather anticipated in December and January and following the UNJLC 'cold snap' survey, 31,000 blankets were distributed during November in West Darfur alone, approximately two per family. A further 20,000 are expected to be distributed by mid-December. The blankets were distributed by HelpAge, Save the Children US and Concern to populations assessed as most vulnerable.

NFI Distributions: Despite intense instability, small-scale distributions were made in Sisi and Gokar Camps. Neither camp had been served previously with NFIs due to a combination of the lack of capacity of implementing partners, insecurity and uncertain administrative infrastructures within the camps. Distributions were implemented through HelpAge following an Extremely Vulnerable Individuals (EVI) assessment. Due to constraints, these had to be made by donkey cart to individual households. Following violence in Sirba Camp, UNJLC facilitated the small-scale distribution of NFIs to those who fled. A further 200 households within the camp who lost belongings during the violence have been identified as in need of NFIs.

South Sudan

NFI Coordination: Rob Sepe is the NFI Coordinator for UNJLC in South Sudan. He can be reached at Robert.sepe@wfp.org. and +249 734 333119, +88 2161 2111 7673. UNJLC is the sector co-lead with World Vision.

Rest of Sudan (ROS)

NFI Coordination: Sarah McNiece is the UNJLC NFI Coordinator for non-Darfur North Sudan. She can be reached at Sarah.mcniece@wfp.org and +249 912170728, +249 187089433.

Support to Organised Returns - Logistics Planning: The inter-agency Logistics Coordination Committee (LCC) continues with operational planning under the joint government/UN plan for the organised return of IDPs to Southern Sudan and the Transitional Areas and is currently involved with the setting up of Departure Centres, although land allocation for these is still awaiting resolution. Registration has commenced with the first returnees expected to start moving in January 2007.  

5. SURFACE TRANSPORT

Darfur

Convoy: UNJLC/UNDSS is planning to organise another light vehicle convoy, depending on demand for the service and the current security situation. Organisations interested in joining UNJLC-facilitated convoys should contact sudan@unjlc.org . The form is available at http://www.unjlc.org/sudan/transport/land/light_vehicle_convoys/view.

North Darfur: The volatile security situation in North Darfur is disrupting planned Mine Action Group activities, especially in areas north of El Fasher. Alternate tasking is being issued to West Regional Mine Action Office assets, planned on a 'day to day' basis until the security conditions improve, allowing for the WRMAO planned and prioritised tasking schedule to resume.

West Darfur: Road access in West Darfur is still very restricted with 95% of roads currently "No Go". All convoys should be with escort. WFP in El Geneina is now beginning to open up food convoys and inviting NGOs to avail of these convoys. Convoys will be escorted by AU and GOS police. Interested organisations should send requests to the WFP focal point - Brian Kavanagh at brian.kavanagh@wfp.org.
 
Landmine Clearance: Along the Mornei-Habilla road, ACTED's rehabilitation work is now complete on the following stretches: Mudpit Tullus, Wadi Tullus East, Wadi Tullus West, Mudpit JumJum (aka Tutti), Wadi JumJum (aka Tutti), Wadi Mornei, Khorr Adebei and Wadi.  In December, work will start on the Mornei-Zalingei road for three months and then on the Zalingei-Garsila road for two months.

South Sudan

Juba Bridge Collapse: The Juba bridge suffered a partial collapse on the evening of 6 November on its northeast  part due to an overweight trailer crossing the bridge. Police regulated traffic on the operational side although traffic was slow going. Damage was immediately assessed by engineers from GOSS and the private sector, with repairs on two of the culverts already completed by 8 November. Photographs are posted on the UNJLC website at unjlc.org. Click on Sudan and follow the link.
Reparation and partial re-construction of Juba Bridge is under way and one lane of the bridge is operational. There is no waiting time for inbound and/or outbound traffic.
According to the traffic police/guards at the East side of Juba Bridge, the maximum weight of trucks that can be permitted to cross this bridge is 5 metric tons.
There are no weigh-bridges in Juba area, hence the weight assessment of vehicles aiming to cross Juba Bridge is left to the judgement of traffic police/guards. Truck-loads considered too heavy are re-loaded onto "Daffar" trucks at a check-point approximately 200m East of Juba Bridge. ("Daffar's" are typically Mitsubishi Canters with a total weight of 4,500 kg.

GIS: The recently initiated UNJLC GIS project to set up a comprehensive and ground-verified geographic database of the road network in South Sudan is continuing. The road conditions updates system will be modelled on a system set up in Pakistan by UNJLC. Regularly updated maps produced from this compilation are available on the UNJLC website (www.unjlc.org) and represent the WFP Road Project as well as State Ministers' priorities for further road rehabilitation. UNJLC is meeting with UNMIS, UN agencies and INGOs to assist in the collection of road conditions data to update information. Maps are available on the UNJLC website on unjlc.org under Maps Centre.

UNMIS convoy: UNMIS is organising convoys on an ad hoc basis (with armed escort) along the main routes through Central and Western Equatoria. For more information on how to join, please contact Brigitte Troughton (OIC Movcon Detachment), Juba on +249 912174087 or troughtonb@un.org.

Landmines: All de-mining operations have been suspended in Malakal due to insecurity. Work continues on the manual clearance of Kotama Junction, Kapoeta-Boma Road, with surface Battle Area Clearance of the Customs Market in Juba also continuing.

Rest of Sudan

Landmines: UNMAO clearance of the road from Kassala to Hameskoreib is now complete and the road is open. This is the only confirmed clear access to Hameshkoreib from Kassala.

6. AIR OPERATIONS

Sudan Wide

Updated Flight Schedules: UNMIS and WFP-HAS updated flight schedules can be found at http://www.unjlc.org/sudan/transport/air/schedules.

WFP-HAS Fleet:  The WFP-HAS fleet currently consists of: 

• Khartoum: Two Dash-8s, two B-1900s, one B-200, one C208
• El Obeid: One C208, one AN-12
• Nyala: One C208, two M18 Helicopters
• El Fasher: Two M18 Helicopters
• Geneina: Two M18 Helicopters
• Wau: One C208
• Juba: Two C208
• Lokichoggio: Two Dash-8s, two Buffalos, six C208s
• Rumbek: Two Twin Otters,
  

UNMIS Passenger Flights and Cargo Transport: UNMIS posts the manifests for its passenger flights at 1600 the day before on the UNMIS intranet. UNMIS operates regular cargo flights El Obeid to Juba (20MT capacity). Organisations can apply to send cargo on those flights on a space available basis. There is capacity of up to 1 MT on UNMIS passenger flights, depending on the location. Items are more likely to be transported if divided into 25kg boxes. To apply for UNMIS Air, Rail, Surface and Barge Service spare cargo capacity, fill out the UNMIS Request Form (CMR) on   http://www.unjlc.org/sudan/transport/air/cargo_passenger/ and submit to the UNJLC office for authorisation. Forms should then be submitted to UNMIS Movcon for processing between 0800 and 1300. UNMIS cannot accept any CMR for cargo less than 20KG since small packages can more easily be lost. 

Darfur

UNHAS West Darfur: A second UNHAS helicopter is expected in West Darfur within the next few weeks. This will open up opportunities to access certain areas in order for assessments to take place. The helicopter will initially be used for passengers, although may eventually be used to implement small-scale emergency response distributions should this become necessary.

There is a bi-weekly Helicopter User Group meeting in El Geneina. In December, these will take place on 4th and 18th at 1030. For further details, please contact Neil Barriskell at neil.barriskell@wfp.org. Contacts for WFP/UNHAS are Amy Martin on amy.martin@un.org and Alan Enever on alan.enever@wfp.org.   

Landing Zones: The landing zone at Krenik is in urgent need of workstones to reduce dust. WFP has agreed to carry out Food for Work activities with community workers at the landing zone to cover this need. The landing zone in Ararah is under reassessment due to the sloped nature of the landing strip. The identification of a new landing zone is in progress.   

NFI Flights: There has not been a regular 2006 schedule for WFP-HAS NFI cargo flights to Darfur. However, the WFP-HAS small cargo service (25 kg/package up to 100 kg total) is still available to North and South Sudan. Interested organisations should contact WFP-HAS at dominic.waldron@wfp.org or kennedy.ooro@wfp.org. Organisations can also transport items through UNMIS on a space-available basis. Please contact UNJLC for details at sudan@unjlc.org  

An updated list of commercial options for air cargo transport is now available on the UNJLC website at www.unjlc.org

South Sudan:

Juba Airport: Currently, there are three operational Caravans  based in Juba Airport. De-mining activities in the vicinity of the airport are ongoing.

Repairs to Bor Airstrip: Short-term efforts to rehabilitate the airfield have stalled. Caravans are able to land but larger planes are not. State government has reported that it is unable to continue with repairs due to the lack of a roller. Availability of such a roller is extremely limited, although manual labour to repair small potholes is still considered a temporary option by the international community. In the longer term, a proposal has been drafted by UNJLC for GTZ to complete repair. GTZ's equipment is currently working its way down to Bor from Mabior. The current budget for rehabilitation is estimated at US$120,000. Meanwhile, the CHF is reported to have allocated adequate funds to repair and lengthen the airstrip. 

Landmine Clearance: Mine Action Group continues the manual mine clearance of Kapoeta airstrip extension.

UN-HAS Flights: While most WFP-HAS flights are on a per-request basis, there are some fixed flights. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, WFP-HAS flies Loki-Juba-Rumbek-Juba-Loki. On Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, WFP-HAS flies Loki-Juba-Rumbek-Malakal-Rumbek-Juba-Loki. As of mid-October, it will be possible to make flight bookings in Juba. Forms are available in UNJLC office in Juba and on www.unjlc.org. Updated schedules can also be obtained on the UNJLC website.
UNHAS Air Operations Loki will remain operational throughout the year for flights requests to South Sudan. No flights are expected on 25th and 26th of December 2006 and also on 1st and 2nd of January 2007, although they will remain on standby for any emergencies.

OATG Meeting:  The next OATG meeting for South Sudan flight coordination WFP-HAS is scheduled for 5 January 2007 at 1500 in Juba. For details of meeting, please contact Paal Jannang on paal.jannang@wfp.org

Rest of Sudan: WFP-UNHAS has started flight operations to Kassala and Damazine on Tuesdays and Satusdays. For further information, please contact Shorty Adlard at  WFP-UNHAS on shorty.adlard@wfp.org.   

RIVER/SEA TRANSPORT

River Routes:  In South Sudan, the stretch of river between Malakal and Kaldak has now been reduced to Security Level 2 following an assessment. The river stretch west of Kaldak to Phom El Zaref (PEZ) and PEZ to Tonga is Security Level 3.    
Source: UNMIS Regional Security Southern Sudan (Juba)

8. FUEL

There are a number of significant changes taking place in the Fuel Supply chain that may well have an effect on the entire Humanitarian Community and its fuel supply.
The introduction of the new unit "Cracker Unit" at Khartoum Refinery (Gaili) has enabled the Sudanese Petroleum Corporation  to increase its capability with the  effect to date being that there is a current surplus on the market of around 10%. Diesel and Gasoline is being exported using the 6" pipeline connecting the refinery to Port Sudan. If present trends continue into 2007, an approximate excess of 25% is expected.  In addition, hydro electric power is expected to come on line releasing 1600m3 of Diesel per day into the market. Fuel is being exported.
The movement of fuel by air is compounded by the Sudanese CAA banning the practice of de-fueling from wings of aircraft as of next year.  In addition complex licensing procedures for bulk containers within aircraft have been instituted. Expectations are that there will be increased cost implications to initiate a new system of licenses and also a reasonable expectation of cost and price savings from total delivery by road. 

The availability of Jet A1 and all other fuels in Juba, Rumbek, Wau and shortly Bor is welcomed. The first North to South non rainy season movement of fuels through Aweil linking to Wau is expected by using ferries that are run by a private contractor on the Bentiu road to Rumbek, although it is likely to take two years before a more substantial sustainable route in operation is seen.

Darfur

Fuel: Fuel shortages are being experienced in El Fasher due to trucks being unable to access the town as a result of insecurity.

South Sudan

Fuel Prices:
Average of fuel (Diesel) prices in Sudan (SD per L)