South Sudan Protection Analysis Update

Recent conflicts in Tambura, Abyei, Unity State and other areas coupled with climatic shocks such as the unprecedented flooding in Unity, Jonglei and Upper Nile states as well as the economic shocks resulting from Covid-19 have reversed many of the gains that emerged from signing of the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan. The protracted nature of the emerging protection risks have proven to be a challenge for several humanitarian actors. Successive analyses and reports highlight that intercommunal violence is steadily on the rise and, in many cases, these incidences are being directly fuelled by national political actors as an extension of past political tensions and disputes.

Concerns about serious human rights violations committed against civilian populations, including unlawful killings, attacks on civilians, gender and conflict-related sexual violence, limited access to basic services, and destruction/looting of humanitarian and civilian infrastructure, as witnessed in Unity state and the Abyei Administrative Area, continue to put in peril the safety, security, and livelihoods of displaced people.

Protection actors working in the country estimate the severity of protection needs to be extreme in nearly a quarter of the South Sudan Counties with over a half having severe needs and being vulnerable to further shocks. 

The priority protection risks in South Sudan include:

1. Attacks on civilians, civilian infrastructure and unlawful killings
2. Gender and conflict-related sexual violence, sexual exploitation and abuse
3. Denial of resources, opportunities and services