Opening remarks of Deputy Head of Delegation Lothar Jaschke at the Ceremony for the signature of the project: “Strengthening Community Adaptability and Resilience for Displaced and Host Populations...

Distinguished guests,Colleagues, Ladies and gentlemen,It is a great honour to be here today for the launch of this important project in Juba and Malakal. This is a significant moment in our ongoing partnership to support South Sudan and its people during these challenging times. I am very happy that we do the launch with our excellent UN partners. At the EU we love the UN system, and the EU is its biggest donor. Together we stand for freedoms and for the human dignity as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Together we stand against the backsliding we have seen in many parts of the world where democracy, human rights and the rule of law are under pressure and conflicts and the rule of force are on the rise. Together, today - and of course also tomorrow - , we stand for the support to and rights of migrants and refugees, who so often become scapegoats and victims in – let me cite High Commissioner Filip Grandi – “our brutal world”. Ladies and Gentlemen, In April 2023, war erupted in Sudan with sudden and intense violence, taking the world by surprise and threatening to destabilise the wider region. More than two years on we have seen terrible mass atrocities and the world’s greatest humanitarian catastrophe. Millions of people were forced to flee their homes in search of safety, and security.  South Sudan saw a massive influx of refugees and returnees (some of them were born in Sudan and should better be called “turnees”) in a very short period. Despite its...