22 March 2010 - As part of UNAMID’s ongoing commitment to provide technical and logistical assistance to the Government of the Sudan’s disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) programme, the Mission today delivered water to be used in the manufacturing of bricks for a community school.

After a two hour journey through arduous desert terrain, the military convoy and UNAMID tanker truck, containing 10,000 liters of water, made its way to the village of Harari Naria. The rural community is located 42 kilometers north of El Fasher, the capital of the North Darfur state and home to the Mission’s headquarters.

When completed later in the year, the school will be attended by 306 pupils, between the ages of five and 17, and coming from five nearby villages. The funds for the construction were provided by the Government’s DDR programme. The initiative provides financial assistance and other incentives to those former combatants who agree to be discharged, as well as construction funding to communities most in need.

Mohammed Ahmad Adam, the Umda (community leader) of Harari Naria and a discharged member of SLA (Sudanese Liberation Army) / Free Will, was instrumental in the project. “The DDR Commission of North Darfur agreed to build our eight-room schoolhouse. This is an important step toward giving our children the tools they will need to have a brighter future,” he said.

In all, 35 former combatants in the area have been discharged and reintegrated back into society.