Surveys - Ongoing Survey - Sudan

Overview

At the request of UNMAS and the government of Sudan, SAC conducted an Advance Survey Mission to Sudan in June 2003. SAC conducted subsequent planning missions in October 2004 and January 2005. During the January 2005 mission SAC registered with the Humanitarian Action Center, authorizing SAC to operate in Sudan.

It was agreed that a two-state survey be conducted to begin the LIS. The states will be Eastern Equatoria in the south and Blue Nile in the north. The continuation of the survey after Phase I will be jointly determined by the United Nations, the government of Sudan and SAC.

Funding

The Canadian International Demining Agency (CIDA) has provided initial funding to begin the survey in the Eastern Equatoria state.

Operational Status

SAC hired Damien Vallette d’Osia as program director to establish office and operations for a two-state LIS. Damien was the Quality Assurance Monitor (QAM) for UNMAS for the LIS in Afghanistan, Armenia, and Ethiopia. Memorandums of Understanding were signed with the national authorities in north and south Sudan. Through an international tender the Mines Advisory Group (MAG) was selected as the implementing partner for the survey in Eastern Equatoria and Blue Nile states. The contract between MAG and SAC was signed in March 2006. MAG hired a field coordinator and began recruiting national staff, purchasing equipment and preparing to conduct the preliminary opinion collection. SAC has hired an operations manager and an IMSMA database officer to complete the SAC coordination team. Eastern Equatoria is projected to be completed by September 2006. The survey in Blue Nile will begin in October after the rainy season.

More Information

To learn more about the current Landmine Impact Survey (LIS) in Sudan, feel free to contact us.