UN secures key humanitarian access corridor

The United Nations has secured an undertaking by Sudan's warring parties to open a new corridor in southern Sudan that would not only allow enhanced humanitarian access to the region, but also drastically reduce the cost of transporting supplies. The agreement - reached at a meeting hosted this week by the UN in Nairobi, Kenya, under the auspices of the Tripartite Committee on Access and Crossline Corridors - allowed the opening of the Nile River Corridor. This would enable the use of water barges which cost much less than airlifts and airdrops, the Office of the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan said in a statement. According to the statement, representatives from the Sudanese government and rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) reiterated their full commitment to allowing humanitarian access to all needy areas throughout Sudan. The UN was requested to send a barge convoy to deliver urgently needed food to the Kosti, Malakal, Bor and Juba regions along the river, by 12 May. The meeting also agreed on the need to open more road corridors to enable more effective and efficient humanitarian delivery, the statement said. Mukesh Kapila, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, hailed the agreement as an important step in bringing hope and help to the long-suffering people of southern Sudan.