Children and families who have arrived in eastern Chad in search of safety after fleeing the conflict in the neighbouring Sudanese region of Darfur, now face new needs and challenges as they seek shelter in provinces of Chad that are already some of the most deprived, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said in a statement released on Monday (June 26).

As of June 23, more than 140,000 Sudanese refugees and 34,000 Chadian returnees had crossed the border -- over 90% of them women and children -- and thousands more are expected to arrive as violence intensifies in Darfur, the organization noted.

The refugees who arrive share stories of running away from burnt-down villages, civilians being attacked and killed, many as they try to make the crossing into Chad. Many are wounded or have lost loved ones, and several children have lost track of their families while fleeing, UNICEF said.

Running out of resources for refugee famiies

"The horror children and families are experiencing in Sudan is quickly spiralling into a serious crisis in Chad", the representative of the organization in Chad, Jacques Boyer, was quoted as saying in the statement. "We are running out of resources to provide assistance to children and families arriving while increasingly fearing that this humanitarian emergency could break a very fragile cohesion across borders."

The majority of refugees arrive in Chad through 27 entry points along the border, in the provinces of Quaddai, Sila and Wadi Fira. In these places, the levels of deprivation are among the highest in the country, according to UNICEF. Even before the arrival of new refugees, access to essential services such as water, shelter, healthcare and education was extremely limited. Now, local communities are facing additional pressure to share very scarce resources.

Since trade with Sudan has been completely suspended, the prices of food and commodities have also gone up significantly.

$25 million needed, only 10% mobilized

"This crisis is escalating by the day, and we need help quickly to limit the effects of the humanitarian disaster that is unfolding before our very eyes", said Boyer.

UNICEF said that $25 million dollars were needed to respond to the crisis, but that UNICEF Chad had thusfar only mobilizing 10% of this.

Since the start of the crisis, UNICEF said that it had built boreholes for refugees and host communities to ensure access to safe water, provided home water treatment and delivered hygiene promotion messages to avoid waterborne diseases; set up child-friendly spaces to provide safe spaces for children, provided psychosocial support, and identified and reunited separated and unaccompanied children with their families.

The organization said it had also provided essential medicines, vaccines and nutrition supplies to the health centres in the villages hosting refugees; raised awareness among refugees and host communities on essential family practices, social cohesion and prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse.