FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Debbie DeVoe Catholic Relief Services Regional Information Officer, East Africa +(011).254.733.556.868 ddevoe@crsearo.org

CRS BUILDS SHELTERS FOR 750 DISPLACED FAMILIES IN DARFUR Classrooms, Toilets and Essential Household Items Offer Additional Assistance

EL GENEINA, West Darfur, Sudan, August 07, 2007 - Catholic Relief Services is building temporary shelters for 750 families displaced by the ongoing conflict in Darfur, protecting them from heavy seasonal rains. Funded by the U.S. Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), these shelters are improving living standards for families residing in Ardamata camp in El Geneina, West Darfur. CRS is also building temporary classrooms, distributing household items and helping families to construct individual household toilets.

"About 750 families left the Sirba region due to insecurity and built makeshift shelters in a flood zone next to Ardamata camp. Exposed to the elements, these families were living in crowded, unsanitary conditions," said Samuel Kaiyani, CRS' shelter program manager in West Darfur. "CRS worked with the local government, other aid agencies and existing camp residents to identify plots of land where the more recently displaced families could relocate. Five hundred families have now moved into their new shelters, and we are currently constructing 250 more shelters with the assistance of the beneficiaries."

Interagency cooperation and support from the Sudanese government resulted in a well-planned layout for the extension to Ardamata camp, which was designed in consultation with the displaced families. Camp residents who are struggling to make ends meet now have their own living space and access to clean water and toilet facilities. The government also set aside space for a school, market and mosque.

"I can now sleep comfortably without worry of the rains or scorching sun," said Mariam Abdalla Bakir, a 32-year-old mother of four who recently moved into a new shelter with her family. "I enjoy a good environment and more freedom on my own plot."

In addition to building the temporary shelters, CRS is planting trees throughout the camp extension and is providing each family with materials to construct a temporary toilet for individual household use. CRS is also distributing to each family two mosquito nets, a bucket, a kitchen set and 10 bars of soap, funded by the United Nations. Each family will also receive a plastic roofing sheet, three sleeping mats, three blankets, two water cans and two sets of women's clothing, funded by OFDA and to be distributed by another agency.

CRS has also built three temporary classrooms and is supporting four volunteer teachers to allow 250 additional displaced children in Ardamata camp to continue with their education. These latest activities further CRS' extensive education initiatives in West Darfur, which include construction of more than 80 permanent and 155 temporary classrooms as well as training and support for more than 80 volunteers to accommodate the growing number of students in El Geneina and surrounding communities.

Supporting relief and development programs in Sudan since the end of the first major civil war in 1971, CRS is one of the largest nongovernmental humanitarian agencies working in the country. In West Darfur, CRS is providing food, water, sanitation, shelter, education, health and agriculture services to 150,000 people affected by the conflict. In South Sudan, CRS provides support for agriculture, education, emergency relief, health, business enterprise, capacity building and peace building.

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Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic community. The agency provides assistance to people in 98 countries and territories based on need, regardless of race, nationality or creed.