OCHA: (5) Million people are One Step Away from Famine

Sudan Events – Agencies

Rates of food insecurity and malnutrition increased during a year of conflict between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), especially in Darfur, Kordofan, Khartoum, and Gezira states.
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said 5 million people are one step away from famine.
In addition to the presence of 18 million people, representing two-thirds of the population, who suffer from severe food insecurity. There are also 730 children who suffer from malnutrition.
To alleviate this situation, according to OCHA, humanitarian agencies have developed a famine prevention plan that focuses on integrated responses led by food security, nutrition, health, water and sanitation clusters, with an emphasis on the importance of protection.
However, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs pointed out that the plan depends on two rare things: access and funding.
The office noted that the results of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) for Sudan in late 2023 showed a bleak picture of increasing food insecurity and malnutrition across Sudan, especially in areas affected by conflict and access restrictions.
According to a report by the Office, these concerns have been confirmed in various reports since the release of the IPC in December 2023, including the FAO Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission (CF SAM), which reported significant declines in cereal production compared to 2022, and the assessment of the World Food Program’s Comprehensive Food Security and Vulnerability (CF SVA) and the Famine Early Warning System (FEET) network’s release of its March-September 2024 food security outlook, which includes a famine warning in some of the areas of the country most affected by the conflict.

The report adds: Given the current conflict dynamics, the situation is expected to worsen in the coming months, which could lead to a more official warning of “possible famine” based on the accelerating IPC results.