JUBA, June 12 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations agencies on Thursday warned of a severe hunger crisis that could lead to famine in two counties affected by conflict, insecurity, and climatic shocks in South Sudan.
The World Food Program (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and the UN Children's Fund said in a joint report that 7.7 million people, or 57 percent of South Sudan's population, are facing high levels of acute food insecurity between April and July.
The latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report warns that Nasir and Ulang counties in Upper Nile are at risk of famine due to the ongoing conflict, which has displaced thousands after fighting erupted in February between the South Sudan People's Defense Forces and the White Army militia.
According to the IPC report, in Upper Nile state, people in 11 of the 13 counties are now facing emergency levels of hunger, while 39,000 of the refugees and returnees who fled conflict in neighboring Sudan are also facing high levels of acute food insecurity
Hussein Abdelbagi Akol, South Sudan's minister for agriculture and food security, called for a massive coordinated multi-sectoral response to the affected population.
"This is not just a humanitarian issue. This is a national emergency. Even more alarming is that 83,000 of our people are facing catastrophic levels of hunger and conditions so dire, and they are on the brink of starvation," Akol said.
The report noted that the overall malnutrition burden has increased to 2.3 million from 2.1 million children under the age of five experiencing acute malnutrition and in need of treatment in 2025, compared to the previous IPC projection.
"This is devastating for these women and these families. This is due to disease, cholera outbreak, the funding cuts that we are seeing coming through health and nutrition and also reductions in water and sanitation sectors in addition to conflict," said Mary-Ellen McGroarty, WFP representative for South Sudan. ■
