UNHAS in South Sudan: enabling a comprehensive humanitarian response
Managed by the World Food Programme(WFP), the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) provides reliable and safe air transport in the country
After decades of war, South Sudan gained independence in 2011 from Sudan. While the birth of the nation was a momentous event, the last five years have been marred by prolonged conflict and a collapsing economy. The ongoing conflict has forced 2.5 million people to flee the country, while close to 2 million people are internally displaced.
Facing significant demographic constraints and ongoing insecurity, South Sudan continues to be one of the most logistically demanding countries in the world. Over 80 percent of the population lives in rural areas spread across 650,000 square kilometres, making the movement of humanitarians and cargo difficult.
The lack of adequate transport infrastructure and the absence of safe and reliable commercial air services necessitate the sustained presence of the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) to facilitate access to key locations in support of life-saving programmes.
UNHAS provides common air services for the humanitarian community and is one of the few reliable and safe air transport services in the country. With a fleet of 14 aircraft — 10 fixed-wing and 4 helicopters — UNHAS enables 291 registered humanitarian organizations to reach vulnerable populations. Since the beginning of the year, UNHAS has transported approximately 81,000 humanitarian aid workers and 1,200 metric tons (mt) of light humanitarian cargo to over 80 destinations across the country.
Based on feedback from annual surveys, non-governmental organizations, United Nations agencies and others overwhelmingly agree that UNHAS plays a key role in allowing their agencies to achieve their humanitarian goals.
In 2018, contributions from the European Union (EU), along with other donors, enabled UNHAS to meet the needs of the humanitarian community.
EU humanitarian funding is especially useful in meeting the demands of rapid response missions to hard-to-reach locations. Within three days of a request for a mission, UNHAS launches a flight, often using helicopters to access areas that have been prioritized for an inter-sectoral assessment or response.
Beyond South Sudan
“Humanitarian and development response in some of the world’s most challenging emergencies would be severely limited without air access to remote, insecure and hard-to-reach hot spots, where human suffering and the need for assistance are prevalent. Contributions from the European Union and other donors provide a critical lifeline for UNHAS across all operations, enabling the humanitarian air service to meet the air transport needs of over 750 organizations,” explains Carlos Botta, Deputy Chief, WFP Aviation Service in Rome.
In addition to ECHO’s strong and continued support to UNHAS operations in South Sudan, the EU in 2018 also contributed to UNHAS operations in Chad, Ethiopia, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Mauritania, Sudan and Somalia, thus positioning itself as one of UNHAS’s key partners.
The operations funded by the European Humanitarian Aid in 2018, represent more than 90 percent of global UNHAS operations, with a combined fleet of 40 fixed wing aircraft and 14 helicopters. From January to November 2018, these operations have transported 300,000 passengers and 2,700 mt of light relief cargo to 256 destinations on behalf of hundreds of humanitarian and development actors, enabling sustained response to several emergencies including the Sahel crisis, the insurgency in North-East Nigeria, the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the surge in refugee populations in Sudan among others.
