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Interview with Ramesh

r

Rajasi ngham, Chief, UNOCHA Sudan

Ramesh Rajasingham, Chief UNOCHA Sudan in his office in Khartoum

Q: Could you tell us some- encompass ten different Our role is to bring NGOs and
thing about yourself? countries. UN agencies together for
interagency assessments, to
I have been in Sudan for a We undertake field-based identify the needs and co-
little more than two years. co-ordination of humanitarian ordinate a response to these
Prior to this, since 1990 1 activities in all domains. To needs in the critical sectors.
worked with OCHA, do this are also in the "deep-
UNICEF or humanitarian field", which means that we We are also responsible for
agencies in various countries. go into isolated and difficult making sure that humanitari-
I spent a few years in places where you find very an workers have access to
Afghanistan immediately few other agencies. We also vulnerable persons. This is
after the Soviets left, in Iran, oversee co-ordination activi- essential in Sudan and espe-
in Bosnia and, just before ties by facilitating them here cially in Darfur because the
coming here, I spent seven in Khartoum and Juba. We security situation and some-
years in New York, so I have used to have a large office in times restrictive operational
experience of both the field Nairobi providing support to constraints, etc., may impede
and headquarters. South Sudan this has now our access. We are responsi-
moved to Juba. ble for the negotiations that
My background is develop- ensure that access.
ment economics, but I have We support the Humanitarian
been working in the humani- Co-ordinator, who is also the In addition we have a critical
tarian field for the whole of Deputy Representative of the role in advocating for the pro-
my UN career. Secretary-General. In real tection of the rights of vulner-
terms, this requires that we able persons. If we hear about
Q: What is OCHA doing in are present in twenty different abuses going on in the field,
Sudan? locations in the country. In we raise the issue either with
each location we have one or relevant UN officers, local
OCHA's operation in Sudan is two expatriate staff. In Darfur and national authorities to
the biggest in the world. We we have more of them work- get the appropriate action
employ over 200 persons in ing in the offices. The field taken.
North and South Sudan of staff is OCHA's backbone -
which more than fifty are they are amazing people On of OCHA's key responsi-
international staff. Sudan is doing great work in very diffi- bilities is the preparation of
the biggest country in Africa. cult environments. the annual UN Work-Plan for
It is so vast that it could really all the agencies - a document

202 2006 Diva