Move comes ‘amid looming threat of famine, as conditions for civilians deteriorate, fighting intensifies,’ says World Food Programme
ANKARA
The UN’s World Food Programme announced on Thursday that it decided to urgently expand its emergency food and nutrition assistance in Sudan.
“WFP is urgently expanding its emergency food and nutrition assistance in #Sudan amid the looming threat of famine, as conditions for civilians deteriorate and fighting intensifies,” the agency said on X.
“The situation is already catastrophic, says WFP’s @micdunford,” it stressed, referring to Regional Director for Eastern Africa for WFP Michael Dunford’s concerns about the issue.
WFP Africa also said on X: “Conditions for civilians are deteriorating and fighting is intensifying in battle zones like El Fasher and Khartoum.”
In its Hunger Hotspots Report: famine looms in Gaza while the risk of starvation persists in Sudan, Haiti, Mali, and South Sudan, the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization had also said on Wednesday that Sudan is among “18 hunger ‘Hotspots’.”
The report pointed out the escalating conflict and displacement in Sudan, urging urgent action as the lean season nears.
Around 18 million people face acute food insecurity, including 3.6 million malnourished children, it indicated.
Famine threatens millions in Darfur, Kordofan, Al Jazirah, and Khartoum as the country hosts nearly 10 million internally displaced people and 2 million refugees, adding strain to neighboring countries like South Sudan and Chad.
In South Sudan, the risk of starvation is set to almost double from April to July 2024 due to domestic food shortages, currency depreciation, floods, and conflict, compounded by an influx of returnees and refugees from Sudan.
Sudan fell into violence in April 2023 amid clashes between the army and the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group.
The conflict has killed nearly 13,900 people and displaced nearly 8.1 million others, including around 6.3 million who have been internally displaced within Sudan, according to figures released by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in February.
