The directors of three UN agencies have launched this appeal to demand that humanitarian aid reach the people dying of hunger due to the famine in South Sudan.
The latest food security analysis in South Sudan has led to declaring famine in the counties of Leer and Mayendit, in Unity State, and to identifying two further counties as being at risk. The lives of 100,000 people are under threat.
Despite a significant humanitarian response in South Sudan on the part of Fao, Unicef, the World Food Programme (Wfp) and their partners, food insecurity in these areas has reached unprecedented levels due to prolonged periods of violence, insecurity, displacement and a lack of humanitarian funding, preventing adequate access to aid.
We remain united in our appeal for immediate and safe access to be granted to humanitarian actors and for humanitarian space to be respected, because an even more severe famine can only be averted if aid is urgently scaled up and reaches those who need it most.
Massive and timely humanitarian interventions have prevented famine over the past three years, mitigating the worst effects of the crisis. But delivering humanitarian assistance has become increasingly difficult in these areas.
Today nearly 5 million South Sudanese are facing severe food insecurity and, not only are they unable to meet their basic food needs, but they are also being forced to sell essential assets in order to buy food. The situation is likely to continue to worsen during the dry season, which begins in July. People are dying of hunger. We must act now.
