Over 60,000 malnourished children in South Sudan’s Upper Nile State are at risk of plunging deeper into malnutrition as treatment supplies run critically low and resupply efforts are hampered, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and UNICEF warned on Thursday.
According to a joint statement from the two UN agencies, intensified fighting along the White Nile River has meant no humanitarian supplies have reached the area in almost a month. The river is the main humanitarian supply corridor into Upper Nile.
“Upper Nile state has some of the highest rates of malnutrition in South Sudan, with over 300,000 children affected by moderate or severe malnutrition in the past year. As the rainy season progresses and conflict continues to displace families, the spread of waterborne diseases and increased food insecurity is expected to contribute to a rise in the number of malnourished children,” the statement reads in part. “Without urgent access and resupply of vital assistance, WFP and UNICEF expect to exhaust nutrition supplies to treat moderate and severe cases of malnutrition by the end of May.”
“This will bring life-saving treatment programs across the state to a standstill, impacting tens of thousands of children undergoing treatment,” the statement added.
According to the statement, in mid-April, barges carrying 1,000 metric tonnes of food and nutrition supplies bound for Upper Nile state were forced to return due to insecurity. Almost 3,000 additional metric tonnes are on standby in Bor – a humanitarian cargo hub along the Nile River – ready for delivery as soon as conditions allow.
“Children are already the first to suffer during emergencies. If we can’t get nutrition supplies through, we are likely to see escalating malnutrition in areas already at breaking point,” said Mary-Ellen McGroarty, WFP Representative in South Sudan. “This is already one of the most food-insecure regions in South Sudan, with extremely high rates of malnutrition. In these situations, every day makes a difference for a malnourished child in need of life-saving treatment.”
Due to security concerns and the high value of nutrition supplies, WFP and UNICEF are unable to preposition stock in insecure areas, as doing so would leave health facilities and warehouses increasingly vulnerable to looting, the joint statement said. Already, in Upper Nile, almost 2,000 cartons of life-saving nutrition supplies (around 26 metric tonnes) have been looted since the onset of the conflict, robbing around 1,900 children of their only chance of treatment and recovery.
“We have reluctantly taken the unprecedented step of holding back supplies for fear that they will not reach the children that so desperately need them, due to the ongoing fighting, looting, and disruption of the river route,” UNICEF’s OIC Representative, Obia Achieng. “If this continues, we are in danger of simply running out of supplies in counties across the state by the end of May 2025, with potentially catastrophic results for the youngest, most vulnerable children.”
WFP and UNICEF warn that without an urgent, safe resumption of deliveries, children across Upper Nile will face the devastating consequences of interrupted treatment, reversing hard-won gains in the fight against malnutrition and putting the lives of the youngest and most vulnerable at even greater risk.