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On Wednesday, the UN agencies stated that funding shortfalls have forced them to scale down humanitarian response toward millions of vulnerable people in need of food and other life-saving assistance in South Sudan.
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The UN agencies said in a joint statement issued in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, that dwindling resources amid growing needs have forced humanitarian agencies to prioritize the delivery of vital life-saving support which risks leaving millions behind.
“These are not easy decisions to make, and WFP’s priority is to save as many lives as possible,” Makena Walker, acting country director for the World Food Program (WFP) in South Sudan, said in an official statement, adding that the emergency food assistance, known as the Lean Season Response for 2023, was completed at the end of August in most locations.
The statement also said that emergency food assistance will be prioritized for 3.2 million people who face the highest levels of food insecurity out of 7.76 million people in critical, emergency and catastrophic levels of need.
“These are not easy decisions to make, and WFP’s priority is to save as many lives as possible” says Makena Walker, Acting Country Director for @WFP #SouthSudan.
Read more here ������
— WFP South Sudan (@WFP_SouthSudan)
September 6, 2023
“We have worked closely with the government of South Sudan to ensure we are reaching communities most in need of assistance. The simple fact is that there are not enough resources available to the humanitarian community to meet the needs in South Sudan,” Walker said.
According to official data, so far, only 46 percent of the 2023 humanitarian response plan totaling 1.7 billion U.S. dollars has been funded, the statement said, noting that it is not enough to assist the 6.8 million people it targets to reach with life-saving assistance and protection services.
More than 300 million dollars is also urgently needed to provide the most vital support to people fleeing the Sudan crisis into South Sudan.
According to the statement, extreme levels of food insecurity and malnutrition affect two-thirds of South Sudan’s population, making the country one of the worst food insecurity emergencies in the world.
