Longochuk County, Upper Nile State

DEMOGRAPHY

2008 Census population: 63,166

2020 Population projection* 57,301

Ethnic groups, languages and religion: Jikany Nuer (Gaat Jaak/Gajaak), Koma

Displacement Figures: 4,301 IDPs and 5,863 returnees (Q1 2020)

January 2020 IPC Projections: January 2020 – Emergency (Phase 4); February to April 2020 – Emergency (Phase 4); May to July – Emergency (Phase 4)

ECONOMY & LIVELIHOODS

Longochuk County is located in Upper Nile State. It borders Maiwut County to the south-east, Luakpiny/Nasir to the south-west, Baliet County to the west and Maban County to the north. The county also shares international borders with both Sudan and Ethiopia in the east, and several rivers flow through the county including the Adar and Daga.

The county is part of the Eastern flood plains livelihood zone, characterized by grasslands, forests, and swamps. It is an agro-pastoral area, with livelihoods tied to agriculture, raising livestock, and fishing. An estimated 70% of households are engaged in farming (FAO & WFP 2019) and, unlike most other parts of South Sudan, the staple cereal in Longochuk (and some neighboring counties) is maize. All agriculture is rain fed, with harvests generally occurring in March. Other crops grown include sorghum, cow peas, pumpkins, and okra. The main livestock reared are cattle, goats, and some chickens. Fish is mainly consumed during the dry season, supplementing diets during the lean months.

Longochuk also traditionally sees seasonal livestock movement into the county from neighboring counties and Sudan. In 2014, the FAO reported abnormal livestock migrations east through the county and into Ethiopia. It reported that many traditional migrations from Sudan had resumed in 2015; however, it also noted continued abnormal movements of cattle between Maban and Longochuk. Other major hazards to livelihoods in the county include floods, drought, and pest damage to crops.

In 2013, the FEWSNET reported that populations in the county were of low risk of food insecurity, because of the diversified livelihood sources. However, this worsened throughout the civil war that disrupted the farming cycle and migration patterns, displaced populations, and severely imperiled livelihoods. In August 2014, OCHA reported exceptionally high levels of malnutrition in Longochuk County and throughout much of 2015 the IPC reported Emergency levels (IPC Phase 4) of food insecurity in the county. By early 2016, food insecurity in Longochuk eased slightly to IPC Crisis levels (IPC Phase 3), but in 2020, the county is projected to be at Emergency levels (IPC Phase 4) again until at least mid-year.

In 2018, FEWSNET reported that local food sources were starting to recover through upcoming harvests, but they would be delayed due to a late planting season. However, by 2019, IPC was again reporting decreased harvests, as well as limited access to markets, cattle and water sources for fishing due to ongoing insecurity.

The county has historically relied on trade routes with Ethiopia, however access to these trade routes tend to be reduced during the rainy season and insecurity has further hindered access in recent years. Oil reserves are present in the area, which had contributed to Longochuk being a disputed area during the conflict. However, the county has received minimal dividends from the extraction of the natural resource.

INFRASTRUCTURE AND SERVICES

The county HQ is Mathiang. The main markets are in Mathiang and Udier. Even prior to the 2013 conflict, Longochuk minimal infrastructure, and experienced little development. This was compounded by returnees to the area in preparation for independence. Additional pressure was placed on local infrastructure on services in 2020, when the county received 4,000 IDPs fleeing clashes in Maiwut. Furthermore, Longochuk County serves as an important transit area for IDPs and returnees from Gambella Refugee Camp in Ethiopia, with Mathiang and Udier the most common travel routes.

According to OCHA’s Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) for 2020, Longochuk County has one of the lowest resilience capacities of counties in South Sudan. Approximately 43,000 people in the county are considered to have significant humanitarian needs, which represents approximately 80% of the estimated population for the county reported in the HNO. The need for GBV services is listed as “extreme” in Longochuk County by the HNO. In 2019, the county was one of the areas identified as having a measles outbreak.

CONFLICT DYNAMICS

Even prior to the outbreak of conflict in 2013, Longochuk County was characterized by local violence, often cattle raids and revenge killings, between Nuer clans and neighboring nomadic groups. A community consultation held in 2012 notes that such clashes are often driven by competition over access to water, food insecurity, unemployment and the poor road infrastructure in the county (UNDP 2012). Pastoralists generally migrate down from Sudan, through Maban County, into Longochuk County and beyond, in search of water and pastures during the dry season. As elsewhere throughout South Sudan, the seasonal migrations occasionally can be triggers for inter-communal conflict. Nuer communities in Longochuck often clash with Falata nomads migrating from Sudan towards Chotbor and Chotlualand.

As part of the Upper Nile State’s largely Nuer south, Longochuk’s population has mostly aligned with the SPLA-IO. Southern Upper Nile State was one of the principle theatres of violence between the SPLA and SPLA-IO during the civil war. In early 2015 the SPLA moved north and east from Nasir town, in Nasir County, towards Maithiang and Gul Guk in Longochuk County, leading to the destruction of villages along the way. SPLA and SPLA-IO positions in the southern Upper Nile have remained relatively stable since August 2015, however there have been several significant flare-ups of violence and displacement in the last five years. The local population’s hostility towards government forces meant it proved extremely difficult for the SPLA to actually hold Longochuk and other counties in southern Upper Nile State. The army’s relationship with the surrounding population remains turbulent and often violent with occasional clashes with local armed Nuer groups and communities.

ADMINISTRATION & LOGISTICS

Payams listed in Government and UN documents: Longochuk (County HQ), Dajo, Guelguk, Malual, Pamach, Wudier
Alternative list of payams provided by local actors: Mathiang (County HQ), Dajo, Guelguk, Jangok, Malual, Pamach, Wudier
Roads:

• Mathiang and Gul Guk lie on a major road that runs from Maiwut in the southeast to Paloich and Melut to the northwest. In both the rainy and dry season, the Logistics Cluster listed the southern portion of the road—running from Mathiang to Maiwut—with a “yellow road warning”, but the northern portion of the road—running in a north-south axis through the majority of Longochuck County was listed as closed with a “red road warning”.
• A smaller road runs along the River Daga, by the county’s border with Maban County, from Dajo town to Gul Guk.

UNHAS-Recognized Heli-Landing Sites and Airstrips: Chotbora

REFERENCES

FAO & WFP. (2019). Special Report: FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission to South Sudan. Retrieved from http://www.fao.org/3/ca3643EN/ca3643en.pdf

FEWSNET. (2018). Livelihoods Zone Map and Descriptions for the Republic of South Sudan (Updated).

FEWSNET. (2019). Risk of farming (IPC phase 5) will persist in 2020 despite slight improvements during harvesting period. Retrieved from: https://fews.net/east-africa/south-sudan/food-security-outlook/october-2019

HSBA. (2016). The conflict in Upper Nile State. Retrieved from: http://www.smallarmssurveysudan.org/facts-figures/south-sudan/conflict-of-2013-14/the-conflict-in-upper-nile.html

IOM. (2013). Village Assessment Survey: County Atlas. Retrieved from https://iomsouthsudan.org/tracking/sites/default/publicfiles/documents/Unity_Longochuck_Atlas.pdf

OCHA. (2019). Humanitarian Needs Overview: South Sudan 2020.

UNDP. (2012). Community Consultation Report: Upper Nile State, South Sudan. May 2012. Retrieved from: http://www.undp.org/content/dam/southsudan/library/Documents/CSAC%20Reports/UNDP-SS-UpperNile-consult-12.pdf

REPORTS on LONGOCHUK

Craze, J. (2013). Dividing lines: Grazing and conflict along the Sudan-South Sudan Border. Retrieved from: https://gsdrc.org/document-library/dividing-lines-grazing-and-conflict-along-the-sudan-south-sudan-border

HSBA. (2011). Fighting for spoils: Armed insurgencies in Greater Upper Nile. Retrieved from: http://www.smallarmssurveysudan.org/fileadmin/docs/issue-briefs/HSBA-IB-18-Armed-insurgencies-Greater-Upper-Nile.pdf

REACH. (2020). Situation Overview: Upper Nile State, South Sudan January—March 2020. Retrieved from: https://reliefweb.int/report/south-sudan/situation-overview-upper-nile-state-south-sudan-january-march-2020

Short, A. (2015). Cattle and Pastoralism in Greater Upper Nile Research Report

UNSC. (2019). Letter dated 20 November from the Panel of Experts on South Sudan addressed to the President of the Security Council. Retrieved from: https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/S_2019_897.pdf

Young, J. (2016). Popular Struggles and Elite Co-optation: The Nuer White Army in South Sudan. Retrieved from: http://www.smallarmssurveysudan.org/fileadmin/docs/working-papers/HSBA-WP41-White-Army.pdf

Young, H. Cormack, Z. (2012). Pastoralism in the New Borderlands: Cross-border Migrations, Conflict and Peace-Building. Retrieved from: https://fic.tufts.edu/assets/Pastoralism-in-the-New-Borderlands.pdf