Sudan refugees 'in urgent need'

By Mike Thomson
BBC correspondent in eastern Chad

Agencies fear Darfur is not a priority for many

Aid agencies are calling on the international community to take urgent action to help the growing number of Sudanese refugees in eastern Chad.

More than a million mainly black Africans in Sudan's western Darfur region have been driven from their homes by gangs of Arab militia.

Around 180,000 have sought sanctuary in neighbouring Chad.

A representative of the UN refugee agency says the response to recent aid appeals has been disappointing.

The approaching rainy season will also soon make it hard to reach those in need.

'Non-strategic'

The situation in Sudan and eastern Chad has been described by the UN as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

Tens of thousands of people in Western Darfur are reported to have been killed by Arab militia groups and many others have been raped, robbed and forced to flee over the border to Chad.

The UNHCR's Deputy Representative in Chad, Lino Bordin, says he believes that donor countries are neglecting the problem partly because the region is not strategically important and partly because of a growing reluctance to help those in need.

Meanwhile, the UN's children's agency, Unicef, has told the BBC that its Darfur appeal has raised less than a fifth of the money needed.

A spokesman added that, with seasonal rains soon likely to cut off many of Chad's refugee camps, the situation is becoming increasingly desperate.