"The community have been left very much to themselves—for thousands of years, really,"

IRC in the News: In Sudan, Beja People's Problems Exacerbated by Rebels Fergus Thomas, IRC coordinator for north-east Sudan found "It is the most under-served, most remote area that I have ever worked in, with huge humanitarian needs―even in basic issues of nutrition and safe water, up to more complex health and education needs. "The community have been left very much to themselves—for thousands of years, really," he said. Until recently, illiteracy rates had been more than 95 percent, but Thomas said that the IRC had made good progress in this area. "In the last three years we have built from zero to 17 schools with the support of the communities, trained 40 teachers, developed learning materials in their language—the first ever literature they have ever had in Bedawit, their language," he said. Maternal mortality is also unusually high, according to the IRC coordinator. Female genital mutilation is universal, and traditional childbirth practices kill many women.