Sept 25th, 2018(Nyamilepedia) — A South Sudanese committed surgeon working in the town of Bunj on Tuesday won the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) prestigious 2018 Nansen award after 20 years of commitment.
In one and only functional clinic in the Upper Nile region, where hospitals have been devastated by the conflict between the  South Sudanese rival forces, Evan Atar Adaha works long hours in that main hospital.
According to the UN Refugee Agency, the hospital, located in the South Sudanese town of Maban serves more than 144,000 refugees from Blue Nile state in neighboring Sudan.
The hospital’s has an X-ray that sometimes breaks down owing to a lack of power sources in the area.
Atar and his hardworking team of surgeons are forced to use epidurals in absence of anesthesia.
The United Nations High Commissioner, Filippo Grandi, on Tuesday commended Atar’s long-term outstanding commitment and said his profound humanity and selflessness had saved thousands of lives.
After fierce fighting between the Sudanese government and rebel forces in 2011 Dr. Atar and his staff were forced to leave the area due to increasing insecurity.
On their arrival in the Sudanese town of Bunj. where more than144,000 of refugees were relocated, he set up his first surgical theater in an abandoned local health center by stacking tables to create a raised operating table.
Since its establishment Dr. Atar has worked tirelessly to secure funding and trained other young people to become nurses and midwives, said the UN Refugee Agency in a statement seen by Nyamilepedia.
The Nansen Refugee Award of the United Nations High Commissioner is awarded on an annual basis to those who are committed to serving lives of refugees. Â
The 2017 Nansen Refugee Award was received by a visionary Nigerian teacher who secured release of some school girls kidnapped by Boko Haram militants  in Nigeria, West Africa.
