South Sudan’s aid crisis deepens as food stocks run low

Humanitarian organisations in South Sudan are sounding the alarm as shrinking funding and a steady flow of arrivals from neighbouring Sudan strain already limited food and nutrition supplies. The World Food Programme (WFP) said more than one million vulnerable people risk losing life-saving assistance by October unless new resources are secured. WFP staff report that logistics hubs are dangerously depleted: Malakal’s stocks have plunged from roughly 10,000 tonnes at this point last year to under 300 tonnes now.

Frontline staff and agency officials visiting Upper Nile and Jonglei described a compound crisis of conflict, displacement and climate shocks. WFP assistant executive director Matthew Hollingworth visited Renk, Malakal and Pigi county this month and highlighted how the Sudan war has driven up prices and complicated imports, increasing pressure on South Sudan’s ability to host refugees and meet local needs.

Renk, a major border crossing in Upper Nile, has seen roughly 3,000 people arrive each week. Many come hungry and exhausted after journeys marked by checkpoints, extortion and violence. Transit centres at the border were not designed for current volumes, leaving families waiting for onward transport or remaining for months. Testimonies from transit centres describe severe hunger and limited options for earning income.

Other services are under strain as well. Malakal’s long-standing displaced population — nearly 40,000 people in more than 6,000 households — faces deteriorating water, sanitation and flood-prevention systems because of funding shortfalls, according to the International Organization for Migration. In August the WFP and UNHCR had already warned that more than 650,000 refugees and asylum seekers were at risk of losing food assistance, and that assistance for about 240,000 of the most vulnerable refugees could run out in September without extra funding.