South Sudan: People in Pibor County resort to eating wild vegetables as hunger crisis deepens

People in South Sudan’s Pibor county are forced to survive on wild vegetables, and desert dates as the number of people dying from starvation rises. With torrential rains halting aid flights, the situation could get much worse quickly, warned Oxfam today.  

More than half the population – over 7 million people – are already facing extreme hunger, including nearly 79,000 people facing starvation, which is more than double that of last year. 

Dr. Manenji Mangundu, Oxfam South Sudan Country Director said:    

“The scenes of suffering are heart-wrenching. Thousands of people both young and old are hungry and children are severely malnourished; many people are going for days without anything to eat. Just this month alone, (July) more than 12 people died from starvation” 

“Record-level flooding is forecasted for this rainy season (June- September), will only make things worse. It will likely decimate crops and push nearly 3.3 million already vulnerable people to a breaking point.” 

South Sudan continues to suffer from climate-induced challenges like flooding and drought. Over 70% of the country, including the Pibor region, has been affected by floods for the past 6 consecutive years. Compounded by the economic crisis, and ongoing conflict in neighbouring Sudan, this has fuelled hunger and poverty across South Sudan.

Together, these factors forced South Sudan's currency to plummet and triggered the highest real food inflation since independence (164%) according to the World Bank, making it harder for people to access food. The prices of staple foods such as wheat, sorghum, oil, and flour have all increased, with some more than tripled since March this year. 

Adau Nyok, living in the capital of Juba said: “Three months ago, I used to buy 10kg of flour for 3500 SSP ($2). Now it costs me 15,000 SSP ($9.3 USD). The prices keep rising and we can no longer afford it due to lack of access to cash.”   

As Oxfam and partners provide life-saving interventions like food, cash, clean water supplies and sanitation in South Sudan, Oxfam staff have heard harrowing stories from families who are losing their children due to hunger.  Rebecca Korok Nyarek , who lost her young nephew, said: 

“I lost my nephew because of hunger. He was just 15 years old. There is no food at home. People are starving, and when you go out to the bushes in search of food, sometimes you will get something small to eat, even wild fruits are no longer available because of the rains and that’s how we sleep at night.’’  

Fourteen months into the conflict in Sudan, over 750,000 returnees and refugees have fled to South Sudan, where they are facing catastrophic conditions. Transit centres in Renk and Malakal, designed for 4,000 people, are now sheltering more people than five times their capacity.  

Malnutrition is increasing rapidly among children in the overcrowded temporary transit camps along the Sudan-South Sudan borders, exacerbating the crisis, while aid agencies are pulling out due to lack of funding.  

Aisha, a Sudanese refugee from Khartoum fled her home with her children after her husband was killed at his shop in the city:  "We have arrived here and although the sounds of the guns are no longer there, our children are hungry. Most nights, we sleep on empty stomachs and now with the rains, our tents are sometimes washed away”, said Aisha. 

Despite the dire situation, only 28% of the UN appeal for South Sudan has been funded this year. 

“Failing to respond when people are starving is a moral failing. Without urgent assistance, many more lives will be lost. Humanitarian assistance delayed is aid denied, donors must act now.”

 Oxfam urgently needs $15 million to scale up its operations and help people affected by the conflict, floods and diseases.