South Sudan

Between 7,000 to as many as 21,000 people are likely dying each day from hunger in countries impacted by conflict, according to a new Oxfam report published on World Food Day.

The flight from conflict in Sudan with her family was a difficult journey. But in many ways, Shiama Ali’s challenges were just as hard after arriving in South Sudan. 

More than a year since the start of the war in South Sudan, women and children are bearing the brunt of the crisis. For Nadia, her future remains uncertain.

The story of Ayul Ajak, a mother of six with visual impairment, highlights the challenges the ongoing conflict in Sudan has on vulnerable communities. 

“Oxfam is deeply alarmed by the @theIPCinfo classification of famine in five areas of #Sudan. This is one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises that remains tragically overlooked. The international community and conflict parties must act now to end the suffering and prevent further loss of life.”

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.  

Reacting to the outcome of the International Humanitarian Conference for Sudan and its neighbours, held in Paris today, at which countries pledged a total of $2 billion – Oxfam in Africa Director Fati N’Zi Hassane said: “It is morally incomprehensible that Central African Republic, Chad, Ethiopia, and South Sudan – among the world's most fragile states –bear the brunt of Sudan’s conflict while the richest nations slack.   

Only 28 percent of the world’s most influential food and agriculture corporations report they are reducing their water withdrawals and just 23 percent say they are taking action to reduce water pollution. Oxfam’s new analysis of 350 corporations using World Benchmarking Alliance data comes ahead of World Water Day (March 22). 

The influx of over half a million people fleeing Sudan’s conflict meant that transit centers in Renk – a border town in neighboring South Sudan- are swelling with people three times their capacity, with more than 300 people sharing one water tap. The lack of clean water and sanitation is increasing the risk of cholera, warned Oxfam today.  

As the second Global Refugee Forum (GRF) is about to take place in Geneva this week, the InterAgency Working Group for East and Central Africa (IAWG) urges world leaders to honour their commitment to support refugees and the countries hosting them, through increased, equitable responsibility-sharing.