In a joint statement, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP) warned today that conflict, climate change, and soaring costs in South Sudan are causing some of the highest levels of hunger in the world. The warning comes as the heads of the three United Nations agencies wrapped up a three-day visit to the country.
An estimated 7.8 million people – 68 percent of the country’s population - are experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity in South Sudan. More than 1.4 million children under five are estimated acutely malnourished, including some 346,000 children under five years that are severely acute malnourished and in need of urgent medical care.
“The cost of inaction in addressing South Sudan’s complex food, climate, and insecurity crises will be felt in the loss of lives, livelihoods and futures for millions of people across the young nation”, the statement said.
The Director-General of FAO Qu Dongyu, the President of IFAD Alvaro Lario, and the Executive Director of WFP Cindy McCain visited communities who are grappling with the effects of severe weather events, which, coupled with a lack of infrastructure, are worsening the country’s humanitarian crisis, threatening farms and agro-pastoral livelihoods, and displacing communities.
"Conflict, climate change, and soaring costs in South Sudan are causing some of the highest levels of hunger in the world. But just handing out food isn’t the solution. We must break the cycle and empower communities to plant the seeds of hope, opportunity, and economic development. With peace and stability, the potential of South Sudan is incredible", WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain said.
“However, WFP doesn't even have the resources needed to feed those who are hungry today – we need the world to step up.”
The visit comes after the joint UN report on the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2023 found that 122 million more people are suffering chronic malnourishment since 2019 and follows just days after world leaders gathered in Rome for a high-level summit to take stock of progress made to create more efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable agrifood systems.
“South Sudan has the potential to be the breadbasket of East Africa, but the climate crisis, poor agriculture infrastructure, instability, and economic shocks continue to disrupt agricultural and livestock productivity and food availability”, said FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu.
“Investments and enabling policies that will improve on longer term food security, resilience and climate adaptation are urgently needed.”
The humanitarian emergency in South Sudan is caused by a combination of conflict, climate, and soaring food and fuel prices. The situation is compounded by fighting in Sudan, which has led to more than 190,000 people fleeing across the border to South Sudan, further straining already scarce resources.
At the same time, 7 out of 10 people in South Sudan are between ages 18 to 35 and youth unemployment rates are at 50 percent, exacerbated by low levels of education, limited skills, and a weak economy.
“South Sudan is a young country, full of potential, but right now families are relying on subsistence agriculture. With only four percent of farmland being cultivated, and 80 percent of its young people living in rural areas, there is enormous opportunity to grow and develop agriculture and the food sector more generally,” said IFAD President Alvaro Lario.
“To do this we need to mobilize massive investments and implement best practices to combat food insecurity and adapt to climate change. This will also greatly improve rural employment. But we need to act now,” he added.
According to the statement, collaboration among the three UN agencies and with the Government of South Sudan and other partners helped to stave off famine in recent years and enabled farmers to increase their food production and incomes. However, scaled-up and sustained action is needed to respond to the ongoing hunger crisis, avoid further setbacks, and mitigate future crises, the agencies said.
During the visit, the UN leaders travelled to Aweil, in Northern Bahr el Ghazal, who are participating in UN projects to strengthen resilience, mitigate the impacts of climate events, and boost food production. The three officials also met with the President of South Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit, to discuss continued collaboration.
A new five-year partnership agreement was signed to renew inter-agency cooperation which will see the agencies deepen their collaboration and coordination at global, regional, and country levels to support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 2 – Zero Hunger.
Conflict, food insecurity, disease outbreaks and climatic and economic shocks continue to impact people across the country. The UN estimates that 9.4 million people in South Sudan require humanitarian assistance in 2023, an increase of half a million people compared to 2022. Among those in need are 5 million children.
Last week, child protection and food security practitioners in South Sudan urged donors, the government, and the humanitarian community to ensure that the food security crisis does not threaten the lives and protection of children in the country.
With 4.6 million people forcibly displaced, South Sudan has the highest proportion - 40 percent - of its population displaced of any country in Africa. While 2.3 million people are internally displaced, more than 2.3 million people have fled to neighboring countries. Most of them are now in Uganda, which hosts 1 million South Sudanese refugees.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is an international organization that coordinates and advances international efforts to combat hunger and improve food security and nutrition worldwide. The organization was founded on October 16, 1945, and consists of 195 members. Headquartered in Rome, FAO works in over 130 countries worldwide.
The International Fund for Agricultural Development is an international financial institution and a United Nations specialized agency. Based in Rome – the United Nations food and agriculture hub – IFAD invests in rural people, empowering them to reduce poverty, increase food security, improve nutrition and strengthen resilience. Since 1978, the UN agency has provided more than US$24 billion in grants and low-interest loans to fund projects in developing countries.
The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization. The UN agency, awarded the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize, is saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to support people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change. The World Food Programme works in over 120 countries and territories. For millions of people worldwide, WFP assistance can make the difference between life and death.
Further information
Full text: Heads of the Rome-based UN food and agriculture agencies call for greater investments in South Sudan to avoid a catastrophic food crisis, WFP, FAO, IFAD press release, published August 1, 2023
https://www.wfp.org/news/heads-rome-based-un-food-and-agriculture-agencies-call-greater-investments-south-sudan-avoid
Full text: Increased food insecurity in South Sudan exacerbates threats to the lives of 3.1 million children in urgent need of protection, joint press release, WFP, UNICEF, FAO et al., published July 27, 2023
https://reliefweb.int/report/south-sudan/increased-food-insecurity-south-sudan-exacerbates-threats-lives-31-million-children-urgent-need-protection