El Fasher, 17 August 2011 - The African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur and its partner agencies have completed an assessment mission in Western Jebel Marra area, paving the way for increased deliveries of humanitarian assistance to the isolated region.

The mission by UNAMID, OCHA, UNICEF and WHO was wrapped up with the assessment of humanitarian needs in the last of 10 locations visited, comprising the villages of Golo, Killin, Sarong, Thur and Nertiti.

The exercise has opened up access to more areas for delivery of humanitarian assistance and given the international community a better sense of what is needed.

This assessment, together with other verification studies of the UN Country Team, point to a significant reduction in the number of displaced people in Darfur from 2.8 million at the height of conflict to 1.8 million as indicated in the latest 2011 OCHA working figures.

The estimated 400,000 displaced in the Jebel Marra are part of the 1.8 million. The troubled Darfur region as a whole covers territory the size of France.

Most international humanitarian agencies withdrew from the Jebel Marra area in 2009 due to insecurity. The UNAMID-led assessment mission which began on May 1 was the first to establish contact with the isolated region for many months.

The assessment was conducted within the framework of Operation Springbasket, a joint initiative of UNAMID and the humanitarian community aimed at establishing permanent and safe access and delivery of humanitarian assistance to remote areas.

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John Chiahemen, Media Relations, chiahemen@un.org, mobile: +249 (0) 900 397 307