Fighting along the Nile River in South Sudan has disrupted the delivery of crucial humanitarian aid to over 60,000 malnourished children in the northeastern region of the country for nearly a month, two United Nations agencies reported on Thursday.
The U.N.’s World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned that nutrition supplies for Upper Nile State, which has some of the country’s highest malnutrition rates, are expected to run out by the end of May.
“Children are always the first to suffer in emergencies. If we cannot get nutrition supplies through, we are likely to see worsening malnutrition in regions already on the brink,” said Mary-Ellen McGroarty, WFP’s representative in South Sudan, in a joint statement with UNICEF.
The Nile River is a vital transportation route in South Sudan, where the lack of paved roads and difficult terrain, especially during the rainy season, make overland travel nearly impossible.
The agencies did not specify which fighting had blocked the passage of their aid barges, but government forces have been engaged in ongoing clashes with the White Army, an ethnic Nuer militia, in areas near the Nile since March. These battles have contributed to the arrest of First Vice President Riek Machar and a growing political crisis that the U.N. warns could reignite the civil war that officially ended in 2018.
In mid-April, barges carrying 1,000 metric tonnes of food and nutrition supplies destined for Upper Nile State were forced to turn back due to security concerns, according to WFP and UNICEF.
The agencies also refrained from pre-positioning supplies in health centers and warehouses in insecure areas, fearing they could become targets for looting.
“We have had to make the difficult decision to hold back supplies, fearing they won’t reach the children who urgently need them due to the ongoing fighting, looting, and disruption of the river route,” said Obia Achieng, UNICEF’s representative.
