A global food security body supported by the United Nations warned on Friday of the urgent need for immediate action “to prevent widespread death, complete livelihood collapse, and avert a catastrophic hunger crisis in Sudan.”
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) was scheduled to update its analysis in December, which had concluded that nearly 5 million people were on the brink of catastrophic famine. However, this was not possible due to the war. Instead, the IPC stated that it had reviewed the latest evidence available and issued the warning on Friday “to express its grave concern” about the deteriorating situation and pressure for immediate action “to prevent famine.”
The war in Sudan erupted on April 15, 2023, between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The United Nations reported that nearly 25 million people, half of Sudan’s population, need assistance, and about 8 million have fled their homes.
The IPC report on Friday stated, “Without an immediate cessation of hostilities and a significant deployment of humanitarian aid… residents of Khartoum, Gezira, Greater Darfur, and Greater Kordofan states are threatened with reaching the worst levels of acute food insecurity and malnutrition during the upcoming dry season starting in April-May 2024.”
This month, the UN Security Council called for an immediate halt to hostilities. The United States warned on Thursday that it would press the council to take steps to deliver aid to those suffering from hunger in Sudan, possibly by allowing aid delivery across the border from Chad.
The IPC estimates that nearly 5 million people are suffering from acute malnutrition, including 3.6 million children under the age of five, and 1.2 million pregnant and lactating women.
Its estimates also indicate that grain production was 46% lower than the previous year due to fighting in key crop-producing areas during the peak of the harvest season, with food prices in markets increasing by 73% compared to the same period last year.
