Hunger Crisis: The food assistance cuts in some internally-displaced camps in South Sudan that started in September 2021 sent fears among the displaced population including Nyaduer and her siblings. The near-famine situation is very precarious.
“Drastic times call for drastic measures”
Over 7 million people do not have enough food. 1.4 million children are malnourished and 2 million are internally-displaced. Nyaduer’s words echo the condition of millions of children in the country. South Sudan is experiencing its worst food crisis since independence.
In South Sudan, the violent and brutal war has put millions at risk. Women, men and children that fled their homes in search of safety are now finding a new threat: hunger crisis.
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) will suspend food assistance for more than 100,000 displaced people in parts of South Sudan for three months starting October as part of a prioritization exercise driven by funding shortages this year.
Starting October, 106,000 people displaced in camps in Wau, Juba and Bor South will not receive monthly food rations for the next three months and until the new year, when WFP will resume its monthly food assistance for internally displaced people in those camps from January to September 2022.
“Drastic times call for drastic measures. We are forced to take these painful decisions. And stretch our limited resources to meet the critical needs of people who were on the brink of starvation. And now risk slipping back into catastrophe if their access to food diminishes,” said Matthew Hollingworth, Representative and Country Director of WFP in South Sudan.
“If funding levels continue to drop, we may have no choice but to make further cuts as the needs of vulnerable communities continue to outpace available resources,” said Hollingworth.
Food insecurity in South Sudan has increased in the last few years and currently affects more than 60 percent of the country’s population.
