Nearly three million people could become refugees in Sudan if fighting breaks out over the south’s referendum next month, according to a secret UN report that sets out plans for dealing with such an emergency.
The UN’s humanitarian contingency plan said a deterioration of the north-south relationship, as well as tensions within northern and southern Sudan could lead to large-scale outflow of people to neighbouring countries, UN News reported.The UN plans for worst-case scenario anticipate an estimated 2.8 million internally displaced people within Sudan and an additional 3.2 million people who may be affected by a breakdown in trade and social services.
The hardest-hit populations would be those living along the north-south border, as well as southerners living in and around Khartoum who would flee or be forced to move to Southern Sudan as a result of violence and insecurity.