The United Nations has warned that Sudan’s hunger crisis could worsen into a major humanitarian catastrophe without urgent international action.
Nearly 19.5 million people—about two in five Sudanese—are facing acute food insecurity amid the ongoing war between General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s SAF and the Rapid Support Forces, which UN agencies say has created the world’s largest hunger crisis.
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification reports that conditions are deteriorating, with 135,000 people already facing catastrophic hunger and 14 areas in Darfur and South Kordofan at risk of famine.
Since the conflict began in April 2023, tens of thousands have been killed and more than 11 million people displaced, while fighting has spread to new regions, worsening instability.
UN agencies, including the WFP and UNICEF, warn that children are among the hardest hit, with 825,000 under-fives at risk of severe acute malnutrition in 2026.
Officials have urged immediate international action, warning that without intervention, hunger-related deaths are likely to rise sharply.
