Worst Food Crisis in the History of South Sudan?

Over a million people could starve this year
as food shortage intensifies

Humanitarian organizations fear the worst this year as conditions escalate to create the most severe food crisis in South Sudan since its independence.

The Crisis

A toxic combination of extreme weather events from floods to drought, internal violence, interrupted food shipments from Ukraine, and cutbacks in international aid have set the stage for a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions in this already struggling nation.

Now the instability in Sudan’s capital that caused the US and other nations to evacuate their embassies has made the food shortage even more critical. With supply chains strangled from the north, and a mass influx of refugees from Sudan flooding into South Sudan, conditions threaten to push South Sudan’s food shortage to catastrophic levels. 

“Current reports estimate 6.3 million people in South Sudan face acute food insecurity this year, as the country’s population endures its fifth year of crisis level food shortage. Already 1.4 million children are malnourished and at risk of starvation.”

Sudan Relief Fund partners on the ground confirm the situation is dire. “If it weren’t for the food Sudan Relief Fund and the donors provided, we would not have survived,” said Sister Bianca Bii of Saint Bakhita Orphanage, a Sudan Relief Fund sponsored facility.

“Join me in donating to this most needed cause.” -Larry B.

The Causes

A report by CAFOD and the anti-poverty group Development Initiatives showed humanitarian funding for food to South Sudan was reduced by 38% since 2020. The UK alone cut back its budget for aid to South Sudan by a whopping 59% in 2021.

These reductions occurred when the country already faces the burden of added crises. Many in this primarily agrarian region haven’t been able to grow food for two years, as flooding destroyed crops and livestock, and a subsequent drought made planting futile.

Grain and corn shipments have been cut off from Ukraine. Further, many relief agencies backed out of South Sudan this year, citing conflicts and impassable delivery routes. But Sudan Relief Fund and its partners have remained.

Making the situation worse, volatile political and tribal conflicts spread violence across parts of the nation, forcing families to flee their homes and creating a vast number of internally displaced people. All this only deepens the escalating food insecurity.

Now the unrest that erupted in Sudan’s capital, causing thousands to escape the country, threatens to have far-reaching effects that will escalate the already dire food crisis in South Sudan.  The compromised nation is in no position to withstand further food supply challenges, or take in massive numbers of refugees coming across the border from Sudan.

“[Sudan Relief Fund] is helping one of the most severe humanitarian crises today.” -Ann T.

The Victims

The vulnerable – children, infants, pregnant mothers, elderly – are the ones impacted first and hardest by malnutrition. A just-released UNICEF study predicts 1.4 million children will be malnourished this year in South Sudan, particularly during the lean season from April through July when dry weather causes water to be scarce.

Sudan Relief Fund is committed to meeting the needs of desperate families during this crisis. With our networks on the ground, we are equipped to deliver emergency aid to the places and people who need it most.

For 25 years, we’ve brought help and hope to people in the most dire of conditions. But we’ve only been able to do this with your help.

Urgent Help Needed

Starvation doesn’t wait. Immediate intervention is needed to prevent a massive humanitarian crisis in South Sudan to save men, women, and children from dying.

“Please DONATE! I myself am a monthly donor. Join me!” -Clara S.

If you are fortunate enough to put food on the table today, please remember the families and individuals like you who don’t know where their next meal will come from – or if it will come in time at all. Remember desperate parents who fear watching helplessly as their children fade away. Parents who equally fear dying first and leaving their children to survive alone.

If you feel moved to help, please share an emergency gift here. You can make a difference. Thank you for saving lives.

“Sudan Relief Fund is one of my top charities!” -Robert M.