Sudan: 19 international organisations warn of imminent famine

Nineteen international humanitarian organisations warned on Friday of “imminent famine” in Sudan if the parties to the conflict continue to prevent humanitarian agencies from providing relief to those in need.

According to the United Nations (UN) News website, this was relayed in a joint statement signed by the heads of 19 international humanitarian organisations, 12 of which are UN organisations.

In the statement, the organisations warned that: “Further obstacles to providing aid rapidly and at scale will mean that more people will die.”

Humanitarian agencies called on the warring parties to: “Protect civilians, facilitate humanitarian access and adopt a nationwide ceasefire.”

Since mid-April 2023, the army led by Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces led by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo “Hemedti” have been waging a war that has left about 15,000 dead and more than eight million displaced, according to the UN.

At a press conference in Geneva, UN aid coordination office OCHA spokesperson Jens Laerke told reporters that famine is: “Likely to take hold in large parts of the country, more people will flee to neighbouring countries, children will succumb to disease and malnutrition and women and girls will face even greater suffering and dangers.”

The UN spokesperson confirmed that: “Some 18 million people in the country are already acutely hungry and 3.6 million children are acutely malnourished.”

Read: Sudan at ‘imminent risk of famine’, UN aid chiefs warn