From the onset of a crisis, IOM works to provide life-saving assistance to the most vulnerable. To this effect, IOM in Sudan aims to:

• Scale-up cash-based interventions (CBI), which includes but is not limited to conducting assessments on needs, feasibility, market assessments and community consultations, and enrolling beneficiaries based on institutional criteria, facilitating information sessions on cash usage, and organizing post-distribution surveys for monitoring household satisfaction.

In neighbouring countries, IOM’s activities may include:

• Strengthening multipurpose cash assistance, to promote dignified living conditions and integration of displaced populations;
• Supporting returnee households affected by the crisis with cash assistance to bolster resilience and stabilize communities;
• Establishing AAP measures, including complaints and feedback mechanisms, to ensure responsible, sustainable, and protection-sensitive programming; 
• Continuing the provision of life-saving assistance at Migrant Resource Centres (MRCs) and transit centres (TCs), including for vulnerable migrants' basic needs and protection purposes; and
• Supporting direct assistance measures related to cross-border movements from Sudan.

To improve the interim living conditions of displaced persons, IOM in Sudan aims to assist those in camp and camp-like settings, and will:

• Scale-up activities through recruitment and training of staff;
• Collect and provide population statistics on IDPs in displacement sites to support site management support (SMS);
• Coordinating service delivery and provision of life-saving assistance through analysis of needs/gaps, site monitoring, mappings, and facilitation of coordination mechanisms, including with humanitarian actors and government. This may also be used to inform the development of site profiles that identify access to services;
• Supporting planning, development, maintenance, and upgrades to crowded IDP sites, including safety audits and protection measures;
• Promote community participation and self-governance, including CFMs and AAP measures; and
• Facilitate information management with humanitarian actors and government officials.

In neighbouring countries, IOM will:

• Support service coordination and monitoring, including through conducting service mapping and vulnerability assessments;
• Conduct site planning, development, and Operations and Maintenance (O&M) measures, including ensuring access for persons with special needs, and particularly accounting for disaster risk;
• Reinforce governance structures and partnerships with NGOs, which may include capacity building measures;
• Ensure registration/biometric registration for displaced populations and returnees;
• Establish community representative structures to enhance participation, including the establishment of information and feedback centres for improved humanitarian response; and
• Facilitate safety audits and protection mainstreaming to ensure security of sites.

The ongoing crisis has placed additional stress on already-stretched health services in Sudan and in neighbouring countries. In response, IOM will:

• Provide immunization and vaccination services and complement these with malnutrition screening and sensitization campaigns as needed;
• Provide protection and GBV services referrals, given the centrality of protection in the response;
• Strengthen primary healthcare (PHC) activities in countries such as Ethiopia, Sudan, CAR, and Libya, including through rehabilitation and improvement of services in PHCs;
• Provide better reproductive care for women and girls, particularly in Ethiopia;
• Support governments, such as in Ethiopia and Libya, in improving health services, including the establishment of disease surveillance systems and deployment of mobile teams, particularly in hard-to-reach areas;
• Provide medical assistance to meet life-saving needs, including through cash assistance for patients in extremely destitute situations;
• Improve the capacity of health facilities to address Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) and vector-borne diseases as well as identify and fill gaps in public health institutions;
• Pre-departure screenings for migrants receiving Voluntary Humanitarian Return (VHR) support; and
• Conduct assessments on health needs and share findings and best practices with humanitarian actors and partners on the ground.

Protection principles will be mainstreamed throughout IOM’s health response.
 

Through humanitarian border management (HBM) activities, IOM seeks to 1) Protect crisis-affected migrants and nationals and guarantee their human rights and interests; and 2) Respect national sovereignty and ensure border security. To this end, IOM in Sudan will:

• Conduct needs and capacity assessments for HBM to identify measures to bolster preparedness and response;
• Train authorities in evaluating migration movements and migration policies related to identity, temporary entry, health requirements, identification of potential victims of trafficking (VoTs), combating migrant smuggling, and safe referral of vulnerable migrants in need of protection;
• Support frontline workers to review their SOPs for emergencies;
• Provide Points of Entry (PoEs) with infrastructure and equipment to streamline responses; and
• Support authorities to create border measures to streamline aid delivery.

In neighbouring countries, IOM will aim to:

• Support governments with equipment and infrastructure, as well as capacity building support, to efficiently process large or sudden influx of arrivals, ensure clarity of immigration procedures at Border Crossing Points (BCPs), and facilitate referrals of vulnerable migrants as needed;
• Provide life-saving equipment to administrative entities to conduct search and rescue operations along borders, as well as provide emergency first aid, safe recovery, and post-rescue humanitarian assistance in line with international human rights standards and best practices;
• Support the installation and use of (mobile) border management information systems for the registration, collection and analysis of data on migration movements;  
• Deliver awareness raising sessions for border management officials on core humanitarian principles and cross-cutting issues, such as rights-based humanitarian border management, cultural communication with migrants, protection, PSEA, gender, and conflict sensitivity principles; and
• Provide border management authorities with training sessions tailored to local needs, including cross-border crime detection.

IOM aims to reduce suffering, promote psychological well-being and mental health, and increase community resilience. IOM will:

• Directly provide MHPSS services through psychosocial mobile teams (PMTs) in Sudan, Libya, South Sudan, and Ethiopia;
• Implement needs assessment, community outreach, and awareness-raising sessions, including through PMTs;
• Provide specialized support to victims of trafficking and GBV;
• Facilitate non-specialized services such as counselling, support groups, and awareness-raising sessions;
• Build capacities of MHPSS actors, including but not limited to frontline workers, health staff, government officials, municipal representatives, and community volunteers and leaders;
• Strengthen systems for MHPSS referrals, such as in Chad and Sudan, for migrants and communities during and after crises;
• Provide psychosocial support, including but not limited to creative and arts-based, sports and play activities, and psychoeducation; and
• Strengthen coordination mechanisms between agencies and partners, particularly in areas where IOM co-leads the MHPSS Technical Working Group (Chad, South Sudan, and Kassala state in Sudan).

All activities will be conducted in line with IOM’s Manual on Community-Based Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergencies and Displacement and align where possible with the IASC Guidelines on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings.

IOM provides humane, dignified, and voluntary movement support to internal and international migrants stranded by crises and IDPs, returnees, TCNs and refugees in need of urgent movement assistance. This includes evacuations of vulnerable migrants, internally displaced persons and others; voluntary relocation, return and repatriation; and family reunification, as well as efforts for counter-trafficking and the protection of stranded migrants. The Organization additionally provides health and integration support that is integral to the movement process. 

In Sudan, IOM will:

• Provide humane, dignified voluntary humanitarian return (VHR) services to internal and international migrants in need of urgent movement assistance. This may include 1) Facilitating humanitarian transportation; 2) Conducting pre-departure activities and counselling, protection screenings, and pre-embarkation checks; 3) Providing operational and medical escorts for identified cases; and 4) Providing support, liaison, and coordination services for both the host country and country of origin embassies or consulates to organize reception assistance and appropriate referral services.

In neighbouring countries, IOM will:

• Support TCNs with direct assistance as well as VHR to their countries of origin, including 1) Medical assistance; 2) Support with consular services/emergency travel documents; 3) Protection screening and assistance; 4) Post-arrival assistance; and 5) Escorts where needed;
• Provide Onward Transportation Assistance (OTA) to returnees and refugees fleeing the conflict in Sudan including 1) Provision of emergency movement assistance; 2) Protection screening and pre-departure health checks; and 3) Movement assistance to transit accommodation and movement support to country of origin, including transit assistance as needed; and
• Provide border reception services and facilitate coordination with respective Embassies to evacuate vulnerable migrants from the border as needed.

IOM in Sudan aims to play a crucial role in reducing protection risks that crisis-affected communities, particularly mobile populations, may be exposed to. IOM will:

• Collect relevant information on protection needs, gaps, and trends;
• Raise awareness within affected populations on community-based protection mechanisms/resources; 
• Conduct vulnerability assessments and provision of protection and referral services, including through the MRCs and mobile clinics;
• Strengthen capacities of partners, particularly on CRSV/GBV referral pathways;
• Support existing women and girl safe spaces, child-friendly spaces, and recreational activities for trauma survivors, as well as other initiatives that mainstream protection across IOM’s response.

In neighbouring countries, IOM will:

• Facilitate case management, and referral of cases of GBV, medical, victims of trafficking, and unaccompanied and separated children (UASC);
• Provide protection services including 1) Vulnerability screenings at border points; 2) Protection desks at transit sites; 3) Trainings on protection mainstreaming, GBV, PSEA, etc; 4) Individual protection assessment and provision of cash for protection as necessary;
• Train government and NGO partners on protection, as well as build capacities of local institutions;
• Support identification and vulnerability assessments at PoEs;
• Provide tailored protection assistance and referrals as needed to those in vulnerable situations, particularly cases of UASC, GBV, medical, and victims of trafficking, and reinforce capacities to address such cases;
• Conduct distributions of protection items for vulnerable populations, including women, children, and persons with disabilities;
• Facilitate provision of education grants for children displaced from Sudan into Egypt; and
• Provide protection support, including 1) Protection assessments; 2) Sensitization campaigns; 3) Strengthening consular support of countries of origin of migrants through enhanced identification procedures; and 4) Implement integrated, community-based approach to protection, with specific attention to GBV, child protection, and victims of trafficking.

IOM Sudan’s WASH interventions aim to 1) Provide life-saving, long-term, and sustainable access to water and 2) Reduce risks of water-related disease transmission. IOM will:

• Provide emergency sanitation assistance through construction of emergency latrines in various settings like settlements, camps and transit centres;
• Support communities to access clean drinking water;
• Distribute hygiene items and menstrual hygiene kits targeting families whose women are of reproductive age;
• Promote public health and hygiene to prevent environmental pollution and disease outbreaks;
• Identify, assess, and collect data on context-specific WASH risks; 
• Implement safety measures for affected populations; 
• Train WASH management committees; and
• Establish AAP systems as part of the WASH response.

In neighbouring countries, IOM may:

• Distribute hygiene kits and ensure access to safe drinking water;
• Install waste management systems;      
• Develop capacities of WASH committees to ensure sustainable programming;
• Strengthen hygiene promotion/sensitization to ensure proper utilization of WASH facilities and services;
• Provide lifesaving WASH services at BCPs, points of entry and to most vulnerable individuals in transit centres with the goal of preventing loss of life;
• Support with the placement of portable toilets; and
• Raise awareness related to waterborne diseases.

IOM Sudan’s shelter interventions aim to save lives and restore adequate and dignified shelter for vulnerable populations. IOM will:

• Conduct assessments to identify and prioritize vulnerable households;
• Operate the common humanitarian pipeline system;
• Preposition and distribute NFI kits, emergency shelters (ES) kits, shelter repair tools and kits, locally sourced/environmentally friendly materials construction materials for durable shelters, and/or voucher or cash assistance to meet ES/NFI needs; and
• Distribute information to promote proper use, handling, and storage of NFIs;
• Create cash-for-work (CFW) programmes to clean up debris, light construction, etc.

In neighbouring countries, IOM will:

• Provide cash for rental support for temporary accommodation, as well as housing assistance;
• Establish AAP measures, while ensuring GBV and Housing Land and Property (HLP) services are made available to beneficiaries;
• Construct/rehabilitate contextualized transitional shelters including latrines, contributing to durable solutions where appropriate;
• Distribute demand-driven NFIs, including at border crossing points; and
• Provide sector specific cash assistance for construction of emergency shelters.

IOM aims to develop and support capacities of key stakeholders to improve humanitarian response and support community preparedness and resilience. IOM will:

• Conduct community assessments to identify gaps in services and response;
• Build capacities of local actors in emergency preparedness through 1) Supporting contingency plans; 2) Facilitating simulation exercises; 3) Sensitization workshops on guidelines for Mass Evacuations during Natural Disasters (MEND) and Migrants in Countries in Crisis (MICIC);
• Develop processes and SOPs to strengthen warehousing, stock and supply chain management;
• Preposition and distribute key supplies to rapidly and flexibly respond to emergencies;
• Conduct research to implement risk-informed approaches that integrate prevention, emergency preparedness, and response;
• Preposition equipment and build capacities in humanitarian hubs in border areas in coordination with UN agencies and relevant government counterparts to provide conflict-sensitive assistance to internal and cross-border migrants, particularly in hard-to-reach areas affected by the conflict.

The systematic collection, analysis and dissemination of baseline data on internal displacement, cross-border movements, as well as data on the changing needs of people on the move allows IOM, governments, and partners to better understand the mobility dynamics and associated needs of the affected population across the region. As such, IOM in Sudan and neighbouring countries will continue to work in collaboration with UN agencies, national authorities and other key stakeholders on assessments and other data collection activities to inform strategic planning processes, contributing to more effective, evidence-based responses. 

IOM will use the Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) for monitoring population mobility in Sudan, Chad, Ethiopia, Libya and South Sudan, to ensure the provision of regular updated figures to partners and governments, allowing for a smooth coordination of humanitarian and transition activities. The following methodologies will be used to provide critical information management services: 

• Weekly Displacement Snapshots
• Monthly Displacement Overviews
• Mobility Tracking
• Early Warning Flash Alerts and Emergency Event Tracking
• Situation Assessments
• Multi Sectoral Needs Assessment (MSNA)
• Integrated Local Assessment 
• Registration activities
• Flow Monitoring Registry 
• Return Index
• Transhumance Tracking Tool

In Chad, IOM will continue to support the registration of new arrivals from Sudan in coordination with UNHCR and the CNARR, with IOM responsible for registering Chadian returnees and TCNs.

IOM in Sudan and neighbouring countries will also promote and carry out inter-sectoral needs assessments and analyses to inform the response planning and ensure the inclusion of all affected populations in inter-agency processes.
 

To build the capacity of partners to provide life-saving humanitarian assistance, IOM will support NGOs, CSOs and CBOs by:

• Managing a flexible, streamlined, and needs-based fund disbursement mechanism -Rapid Response Fund (RRF) - to further support humanitarian actors who are assisting people affected by natural and/or man-made hazards in Sudan in an effective and timely manner;
• Providing capacity building training on proposal development and grant writing for partners under the following sectors of emergency response: shelter and settlements, NFIs, WASH, protection, health, food security and livelihoods, and humanitarian coordination assistance;
• Providing capacity building training on humanitarian principles such as do-no harm, PSEA, and AAP and narrative and financial reporting in line with donor guidelines to ensure people-centred, rights-based, and consistent implementation across the funding mechanism.

Where relevant, IOM will also establish humanitarian hubs in border areas in coordination with UN agencies and relevant government counterparts to provide conflict-sensitive assistance to internal and cross-border migrants, particularly in hard-to-reach areas affected by the conflict.

IOM aims to address the drivers and effects of displacement and irregular migration related to conflict and natural hazards. In Sudan, IOM will:

• Promote participatory decision-making through IOM’s community-based planning process and designing interventions based on community priorities;
• Provide basic services and infrastructure such as community-owned buildings (schools, community learning centres, recreational facilities) as well as community-based programmes (farming and small business cooperatives) to promote social cohesion and address grievances around strained and overused resources;
• Build community capacity for collective, equitable, and sustainable management of natural resources including integrated resource management (IRM) and basic services;
• Facilitate complementary capacity building of communities and authorities on climate-smart agriculture, drought-resistant agricultural techniques, and livestock management, to manage food insecurity, secure livelihoods, and reduce tensions over limited resources.

In neighbouring countries, particularly in Chad and Libya, IOM will prioritize:

• Community stabilization interventions as above, targeting localities with a large presence of Sudanese and returnees;
• Improvement of community infrastructure and delivery of basic services;
• Increasing access to livelihoods opportunities to vulnerable groups through a conflict sensitive approach and;
• Implementing context-adapted community-based and social cohesion activities.

IOM contributes to the strengthening of health systems and inclusion of migrants, and to building resilience of at-risk communities against public health threats. IOM will:

• Monitor the needs of migrants including IDPs, conduct needs assessments, and lead the integration of migration data into national health system as needed/where possible;
• Contribute to relevant national public health strategies and plans, including health emergency preparedness/response plans and National Health Information System (HIS) plan;
• Facilitate the utilization of the national health insurance system to promote universal health coverage (UHC) for migrants, through advocacy and collaboration with the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF);
• Improve access and quality of care for individuals with HIV or TB, especially in hard-to-reach areas;
• Strengthen the capacity of local authorities and communities along the border to prevent, detect, and respond to health threats within the mobility continuum, including on public health/community-based surveillance to empower frontline workers to address challenges that migrants may encounter along migratory routes (e.g., lack of access to health/nutrition services or information);
• Empower and engage youth in the community on health promotion activities in coordination with medical students’ network (Med SIN-Sudan);
• Support local NGOs by providing financial and technical support.

IOM will also support local authorities, healthcare facilities and community healthcare workers in emergency preparedness and response for natural and man-made hazards, including by:

• Strength health information management systems to ensure early detection and response to public health threats;
• Rehabilitate health facilities with sustainable power sources safe access to water, cold chain and hygiene supplies for cleaning and disinfection;
• Procuring and prepositioning essential medicines and medical supplies in strategic locations;
• Providing health promotion and Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) support including messaging on GBV risks and referral pathways during crises;
• Promote a ‘one health’ approach to emergency preparedness to achieve more comprehensive and efficient contingency planning and public health emergency response.

IOM promotes and supports MHPSS at individual, family, and community level to contribute to wider efforts to strengthen social cohesion, recovery, and crisis prevention through community engagement. IOM will:

• Train community health workers on the topic of the prevention of mental health issues in transition and recovery contexts and how to address mental health and psychosocial challenges that migrants and host communities face during crises;
• Conduct community information sessions, focus group discussions, and workshops on the prevention and treatment of mental health issues by introducing psychoeducation in primary healthcare, social, educational and religious settings in post-conflict environments and providing resources and referrals to service providers for both migrant and host communities;
• Conduct mental health and psychosocial support activities including socio-relational activities, counselling, and referral to specialized mental health care services in vulnerable communities;
• Integrate MHPSS components into IGA in accordance with IOM’s MHPSS and Livelihood Integration (MLI) manual. This includes the identification of essential psychosocial skills and coping mechanisms that can support participants to engage fully and benefit from livelihoods programming, promoting their ability to take full advantage of their work in the short and long-term. 

IOM in Sudan will also contribute to strengthening MHPSS longer-term and institutional capacity of the federal and state Ministy of Health (MoH) and frontline health workers by:

• Conducting training and providing other technical support to state and local MHPSS workers and service providers to provide longer-term MHPSS interventions;
• Coordinating with and (co-)leading TWGs at the state and national levels as identified;
• Supporting community-level support networks and structures that support sustainable (re)integration of returnees.

IOM contributes towards reducing risks of local conflicts (or increased conflict) by working with communities to identify drivers of conflict, strengthen capacities, and deliver peace dividends. IOM will:

• Conduct conflict analyses, including using Transhumance Tracking Tool data, to develop an early warning system (EWS) that identifies conflict hotspots along migratory routes;
• Support local peace processes, reconciliation efforts, conflict resolution mechanisms and other initiatives that promote social cohesion;
• Facilitate dialogues with diverse groups to contribute towards restoring trust and mitigating future violent conflict;
• Enhance traditional conflict resolution mechanisms and building capacity of local rural courts/institutions to facilitate regulated access to pastures and resolving land and other issues, including increasing access to water and other basic services for pastoralists and communities along migration corridors;
• Develop IRM systems to promote coordinated development/management of water, land and other communal resources, to reduce conflict over resources and maximize socio-economic gains without compromising sustainability of vital ecosystems;
• Strengthen local protection mechanisms to improve security and promote trust building and accountability between local authorities and communities they serve;
• Build capacity of local actors to respond to the challenges of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) and understand barriers to reintegration.

These interventions will also contribute to reducing risk of conflicts spreading to the region, where Sudanese and returnees are displaced in remote and/or underserved areas.

IOM aims to support livelihoods and resilience building, and, in Sudan, will:

• Provide small grants to CBOs (existing community solidarity/mutual aid initiatives) as seed funding for livelihoods and/or any life-sustaining community activities;
• Support agricultural or pastoral livelihoods through the provision of input kits, seeds/asset replacement;
• Provide networks of women, girls and persons with specific needs with IGA tailored to their specific needs;
• Facilitate complementary capacity building of communities and authorities on climate-smart, drought-resistant agricultural techniques, and livestock management, to reduce food insecurity, secure livelihoods, and reduce tensions over limited resources;
• Facilitate market-oriented vocational/livelihood training and supporting inclusive skills development for IGA in agriculture, livestock, trade, animal health and other sustainable livelihoods;
• Based on community consultations, create CFW programmes and construction-oriented vocational training for community members to build transitional and/or durable shelters;
• Improve access to local IGA opportunities and providing seed funding to community-led initiatives that promote collective action and social cohesion;
• Distribute in-kind income-generating assets, providing cash or voucher assistance, or supporting access to financial institutions based on community-identified priorities and profitable value chains, in coordination with participating local institutions and associations.

In CAR, IOM will support the settling process for returnees who go back to their communities with cash support and support to develop income generating opportunities. In Chad, IOM will prioritize programming focused on agriculture, establishment of small businesses, and community infrastructure to ensure durable integration.

IOM aims to provide life-sustaining WASH services. IOM will:

• Conduct WASH assessments such as knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) surveys to identify accessibility to potable water points and understand sanitation and hygiene practices, risks, and safety concerns to inform programming;
• Increase access to safe and clean water by drilling, constructing, and/or rehabilitating water points including ground water monitoring, and providing water treatment as well as prepositioning of spare parts and tools to maintain water points; ensuring that communities have better livelihood opportunities by providing them with sufficient water for agriculture and livestock management;
• Use community-led approaches to total sanitation (CLTS) to engage the community in designing the responses and supporting construction of appropriate latrines;
• Build the capacity of community members to establish WASH management committees to support the operation and management (O&M), and maintenance of facilities and conduct community-led sanitation and hygiene awareness campaigns;
• Actively work with government and national water authorities to build institutional capacity including structures, coordination, and management mechanisms inclusive of and for regular O&M activities including human resources, supplies and financial resources to support local communities with sustainable WASH services.

IOM in Sudan will also support emergency preparedness and response to natural and man-made hazards at the community level by: 

• Procuring and prepositioning essential WASH items in strategic locations;
• Providing technical assistance, support and equipment for community-level water management committees to improve water supply and sanitation facilities;
• Supplying communities that experience seasonal outbreaks of cholera and other water-borne diseases with water consumables to treat drinking water;
• Providing soap and detergents including vector control consumables to maintain healthy communities;
• Supporting community-led hygiene and health promotion activities in IDP gathering sites, border communities and PoEs.

IOM will, when possible, address challenges related to HLP rights, claims and restitution by:

• Providing HLP assistance to beneficiaries alongside housing-related interventions, including both legal aid through representation and information counselling, adapted to the context and available administrative services;
• Supporting recovery of civil documentation and personal documents;
• Developing local capacities of CSOs, legal aid services and government institutions by providing policy guidance, expert advice, training and capacity development, supporting the coordination and clarification of instructions and claim pathways and technical assistance for HLP rights;
• Ensuring HLP rights are taken into account during shelter and WASH interventions;
• Supporting with guidance to both IOM and partners on HLP issues related to evictions and other risks in displacement settings including in gathering sites;
• Supporting detailed assessments to ascertain needs, evaluates the cost of rehabilitations, and engages communities and local authorities through dialogues and capacity building;
• In coordination with key stakeholders, rehabilitating/reconstructing damaged infrastructure as part of a broader reconciliation process.

Given Sudan’s vulnerability to the impacts of climate change, including disasters, natural hazards, and environmental degradation, and particularly their intersection with conflict and migration, IOM aims to build the resilience of vulnerable communities to current and future disaster risks. Adopting a community stabilization lens to DRR programming, IOM will:

• Implement community hazard, vulnerability, and capacity assessments in high-risk locations to capitalize on local knowledge and prioritize the most-needed interventions, including the impact of climate change on assets and livelihoods;
• Build capacities of communities, government, and CSOs to plan and implement data informed DRR and adaptation plans;
• Train local authorities and selected community leaders on DRR to support community early recovery and raise awareness on disaster risk mitigation measures;
• Establish inclusive and gender-sensitive community DRR committees with the ability to cascade the awareness-raising campaigns, develop resilience strategies, and contribute to community-based DRR plans.