Notes from the Field — A day in the life of a Chief of Field office in Kadugli
Mujahid Zahoor, the Chief of Field Office in Kadugli, South Kordofan
Being Chief of a Field Office, I must make sure that all resources belonging to children are well managed and children benefit UNICEF services related to; immunization, treatment of severe mal-nutrition, access to clean drinking water, bring out of school children in schools, identify families of separated/unaccompanied children, family tracing and reunification in South, North and West Kordofan states. To achieve results for children, I coordinate and follow up so often with UNICEF teams in Kadugli and the Khartoum office; as well as with other UN agencies, government and non-government partners on diversified tasks.
I visit different areas where children and vulnerable people are assisted, majority of these areas are very far, sometimes it take two to three days to get there! I feel so proud to meet with the communities we serve and support as UNICEF and see the result of our collective efforts. It is also an opportunity for me to learn from the communities and children, through feedback, and how we can improve our work to better support them. When there is any emergency in my Area of Responsibility (AOR) then I take the lead to coordinate with other UN agencies/partners and our team in Khartoum to quickly take action within 72 hours.
Kadugli is a non-family “E” duty station with very limited infrastructure and services in the town. I live in a compound managed by a peace keeping mission that is 17 km away from town and our UNICEF office. In the morning when I head to the office, I see many children along the road, going to school with UNICEF bags. I feel so blessed and motivated to see children getting education with UNICEF assistance, it is great to see this first thing in the morning as it drives me to work more and consistently aim for a better future for children. I go to the field so often to get energy by seeing how our work is reaching the most vulnerable in the hard to reach areas.
There is still a long way to go. I want each child to enjoy her/his right to survival, development, education, protection and participation.
Kordofan (South, North and West) hosts a considerable number of South Sudanese refugees, Internally Displaced People (IDPs) and returnees, even though there are very limited resources with already vulnerable people in the same community. I am so astonished to see the generosity of Sudanese people how they welcome people in need when they themselves living very simple life in limited resources!
One day I stopped at the traffic signal waiting for the Green light, I saw a small girl in the school van was sharing her pocket money with a street child! That brought a smile to my face but it was a stark reminder of the work we have ahead of us to ensure next time I see these two children both will be on the same bus going to school on equal terms.
Prepared by: Iman Mustafa, Communications & Advocacy
