6 February 2007 – Three days after leaving the Sudanese capital Khartoum, the first batch of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to return to their homes in the country’s south as part of a major joint operation involving the United Nations are expected to reach their destinations today.

The convoy of 5,000 IDPs, organized by the UN in conjunction with the International Organization on Migration (IOM), the Government of National Unity and the Government of South Sudan, is due to arrive in the state of Southern Kordofan, the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) reported.

A second convoy was slated to leave Khartoum today, with another nine separate convoys expected to depart before the end of the month as part of an ambitious programme in which up to 150,000 IDPs will be helped to return home before the annual rainy season strikes in the middle of the year.

UNMIS said priority is being given to IDPs heading for communities most conducive to accepting returns as southern Sudan tries to rebuild itself with international assistance in the wake of the 2005 peace deal ending the brutal 21-year civil war that divided the vast country.

Not all communities in the remote south have the necessary infrastructure, health and education facilities, food, water resources and safety conditions in place yet to absorb large numbers of returnees.

As the convoys head south, the UN and its partners are registering other IDPs who want to return home as well.