Japan to grant Egypt $1 mln to alleviate Sudanese refugees' suffering

Zeinab El-Gundy , Wednesday 17 May 2023

Egypt will receive $1 million from the Japanese government to alleviate the suffering of Sudanese who have fled their country to Egypt.

A file photo of Egyptian Red Crescent volunteers distributing water and food to Sudanese refugees at the Egyptian-Sudanese border crossings. Photo : Japanese Embassy in Cairo

The sum is part of a $3.5 million grant Japan has allocated to displaced Sudanese in Chad, South Sudan, and Egypt, read a statement by the Japanese Embassy in Egypt on Wednesday.

The emergency grant aid aims "to alleviate the suffering of forcibly displaced people and returnees forced to flee from Sudan to Egypt due to the armed clashes in Sudan," the embassy said.

The aid will be used to provide food and non-food items for Sudanese in collaboration with the Egyptian Red Crescent.

The grant will be provided through the World Food Programme (WFP) and the High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), with each giving $500,000.

The WFP will provide food assistance to approximately 150,000 people, while the UNHCR will provide essential non-food items, such as hygiene kits and water, to approximately 80,000 people.

During his visit to Egypt in April Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said that "Japan is ready to provide emergency humanitarian assistance for displaced persons in the neighbouring countries of Sudan."

Japan intends to support Egypt's efforts to protect displaced persons and returnees through such assistance and in cooperation with the countries concerned, the embassy added.

According to the latest figures released by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry to the UNHCR, more than 98,000 refugees crossed into Egypt from 15 April to 15 May.