The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) issued a dire warning on Friday, urging donors to provide immediate funding to avert a catastrophic famine in South Sudan.
WFP’s food reserves in the country are depleted, and the organization requires $404 million to prepare for the upcoming year.
The escalating costs of operations and the worsening hunger crisis have exacerbated the situation.
Without early funding, WFP will be forced to rely on costly airdrops to reach remote communities, a less efficient and more expensive method of delivering aid.
“Airdrops are always a last resort,” said Shaun Hughes, WFP’s acting country director for South Sudan.
“Every dollar spent on planes is a dollar not spent on food for hungry people.”
The organization aims to utilize road transportation during the dry season, from December to April, to deliver aid efficiently.
However, this requires upfront funding to secure logistics and procure food supplies.
Over half of South Sudan’s population is grappling with acute hunger, and the situation is projected to worsen due to factors like inflation, flooding, and the influx of refugees from neighboring Sudan.
Since its independence in 2011, South Sudan has been plagued by instability, violence, economic decline, and climate-related disasters.
The ongoing global crises have further strained the resources of aid organizations like WFP.
In 2024, only 2.7 million of the 7.1 million hungry people in South Sudan received aid, and even then, most received only half rations.
