UNHCR Hands Over Health, Education Facilities to Northern Bahr el Ghazal as Sudan Refugee Crisis Strains Services
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has handed over newly upgraded health and education facilities to the Northern Bahr el Ghazal State government and the community of Aweil West County, aiming to strengthen essential services for thousands of refugees, returnees and host communities affected by the ongoing conflict in Sudan.
The handover includes major improvements at Nyamlel County Hospital, where UNHCR transferred medical equipment, a fully equipped operating theatre, a blood bank, an expanded outpatient department, laboratory, vaccination unit, pharmacy, a solar-powered water yard, and a 25-kilovolt-ampere solar power system to ensure uninterrupted health services.
At Salvation Primary School in Wedweil, four new classrooms and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities for boys and girls were also handed over, expanding access to education for refugee, returnee and host community children.
Speaking during the ceremony, UNHCR South Sudan Deputy Representative Mesfin Degefu said the facilities represent two critical pillars for peaceful coexistence and long-term development in Aweil West County—quality education and life-saving healthcare.
He welcomed the growing partnership between the government and humanitarian agencies under the United Nations Area-Based Coordination approach, describing the handover as a milestone in strengthening public services in communities hosting displaced populations.
The Northern Bahr el Ghazal State Minister of Health Hon Dr. Riny Riny Lual, said sustainable development must begin with local communities, noting that residents played a key role in laying the foundation of the Nyamlel County Hospital.
The hospital infrastructure was funded by the African Development Bank Group, while the European Union provided essential medical equipment and financed the construction of a chain-link fence for both the hospital and Salvation Primary School.
The facilities are expected to benefit refugees, returnees and the host community in Aweil West County, which has received more than 35,000 refugees fleeing the conflict in neighbouring Sudan since April 2023.
