Thousands of children facing famine in South Sudan

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Aid is rapidly needed for hundreds of thousands of men, women and children who risk starvation in South Sudan following the declaration of famine, warns World Vision.

War and a collapsing economy has resulted in famine being declared in parts of South Sudan for the first time in almost 20 years, with 100,000 people facing starvation and a further one million people classified as being on the brink of famine.

Almost half the country – 5.5 million people – are facing severe food shortages.

Perry Mansfield, National Director for World Vision in South Sudan said: “The situation facing children who were already hungry and going without meals is now rapidly unravelling. If aid funding and deliveries are not immediately scaled up we should expect to see children facing a catastrophe and starvation and migration to find food on a massive scale.”

The famine declaration in Unity State in the northern-central part of South Sudan means people have already started dying of hunger. It is the worst hunger catastrophe since fighting erupted more than three years ago and comes as the East Africa region faces severe drought with warnings that neighbouring Somalia could also fall into famine.

The famine declaration was announced by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Technical Working Group, which is the body charged with making the careful analysis required to issue famine declarations. Famines are rarely issued and only when the food security situation is at its worst and death rates are rising.

The humanitarian community is appealing for US$1.6bn to provide life-saving assistance and protection to 5.8 million people.

World Vision, in partnership with World Food Programme, is providing food assistance to half a million people in various parts of the country.

Since December 2013, South Sudan has been embroiled in political, military and ethnic conflict. More than 3 million people have been forced to flee their homes, including more than one million who have sought refuge in neighbouring countries.

For further information and interviews in South Sudan, or Australia, please contact: Stuart Rintoul 0407 241 492

Picture: South Sudan refugees at food distribution centre, Uganda

Media Releases, East Africa, Famine, South Sudan

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