When humanitarian photographer and film maker Bob Ditty flew into Renk with MAF, the scale of vulnerability and suffering caught him off guard.
When Bob Ditty agreed to take his camera on board with MAF and fly to Renk – the fragile northern tip of South Sudan – he began researching the isolated region.
Every US travel advisory warned against visiting the town under greatest pressure from deadly conflict raging across the border. With around 80% of refugees entering South Sudan through Renk — one million desperate people who have fled the Sudanese war — it is a place steeped in suffering, and a temporary home for over 12,000 people.
“I’ve travelled across Africa and
witnessed refugee settlements,” Bob
said, “But this was a scale I’d never
seen. It’s a tragedy the world just
can’t imagine.”
On board his first MAF flight, Bob flew for three hours from Juba – appreciating afresh that aircraft are the only way to traverse South Sudan’s vast swamplands. “There was a tangible feeling of safety inside the aircraft,” he said. “Speaking to the pilot, I was struck by the bravery, and love that flows through these guys.”
Transporting medical supplies on board, Bob witnessed the powerful resilliance of people inside the camps, who queued quietly for medical checks under a tarpaulin roof.
“This image of a woman waiting for treatment will remain with me forever. I will never know her name, but I felt her troubled story. Every time I look at her, I relive that suffering.”
Thousands will remain nameless and faceless in this vast settlement – where people carry scars of the worst humanitarian crisis of our time. Bob had only two days on the ground, a drop in the ocean to capture the length and breadth of unimaginable need.
Although he felt a tangible sense of loss, Bob was most impacted most by human resilliance. “These people have lost their entire lives – fathers desperate to provide, mothers without homes or routines and children without schooling. Yet people were so willing to make the best of their circumstances and try to build a fresh start. It’s thanks to the brave work of MAF and the NGO community that this hope can remain. We need to do all we can to carry on in prayer and support.”
STORY / JO LAMB PHOTOS / BOB DITTY
This story was originally published in "Flying for Life - Spring 2026." To view the full issue, click here.