Twelve years on from independence the people of South Sudan continue to face huge challenges, exacerbated now by the war in neighbouring Sudan, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday.
The UN health agency insisted that the humanitarian, economic, social and political crises that began with brutal civil conflict in 2013 have been worsened by the recent influx of refugees from Sudan following the war between rival militaries there - with over 650,000 new arrivals since April 2023.
Right now, approaching six million people - or 46 per cent of the population - face crisis levels of food insecurity - a number that's expected to rise to around 7.1 million during the current lean season.
El Niño and flooding
The WHO report also highlighted that the 2023-24 El Niño weather phenomenon - one of the strongest on record - brought dry conditions, erratic rainfall and significantly impacted harvests.
It also resulted in year-round flooding, which occurred in new previously unaffected areas.
Severe flooding, recurrent violence, weak governance, poverty and lack of infrastructure have created a complex humanitarian crisis which is hindering South Sudan's development, the UN health agency warned.
A staggering 8.9 million people mostly in flood and conflict-affected areas have been affected, with women, children, the elderly and people with disabilities at higher risk.
UNHCR's first-ever Forced Displacement Survey (FDS)
A pilot household survey by The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) on Monday, further underscores the dire conditions, revealing alarming levels of suffering among both refugee and host communities.
The Forced Displacement Survey (FDS) was conducted between April and December 2023 and covered around 3,100 households in South Sudan.
It found that all communities face many challenges including limited services, high unemployment, no education, poor infrastructure and overcrowded shelters.
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74 per cent of households going hungry
Food is a major issue with 74 per cent of both refugee and host community households experiencing hunger in the past month.
And over 40 per cent of both groups had less income than the previous year. Refugees from the Sudan crisis have added to the already volatile areas and overstretched services. The conflict has also affected South Sudan's economy by closing the main oil pipeline.
Marie-Helene Verney, UNHCR Representative in South Sudan, said that "we need to link humanitarian assistance to stabilization and development programmes to the extent possible...Substantive long-term investments are crucial to improving the wellbeing of refugees and the communities hosting them."
South Sudan has over 460,000 refugees from Sudan, DRC and Ethiopia.
With the conflict in Sudan, South Sudan is receiving 1,600 people daily including refugees and returnees. The FDS provides comprehensive socioeconomic data on refugees and host communities to inform programming and policy. This data is key to targeting assistance where it matters most and bridging the humanitarian-development gap.
