GENEVA

The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on Monday called for action in Sudan as famine conditions were confirmed in parts of Darfur by the latest food security assessment report.

In response to alarming new findings, FAO is urging "an immediate cessation of hostilities, rapid scale-up of life-saving food, nutrition, and cash assistance as well as of the emergency agricultural aid," the agency said in a statement.


The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) has found that famine conditions are ongoing in the Zamzam Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp which hosts 500,000 IDPs outside of El Fasher town in Darfur.

"We are witnessing horrific famine conditions in parts of North Darfur and an increasing risk of famine in other settlements and conflict-affected areas, especially in Darfur, South Kordofan, Khartoum and Al Jazirah," FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu said.

"We have been raising the alarm about this looming catastrophe, yet due to the ongoing conflict and limited humanitarian access these communities are still not getting the immediate support they need," Qu said. "We need urgent, concerted action to prevent an even greater catastrophe from unfolding."


Noting that famine can be halted, he said that the immediate cessation of hostilities could be an essential first step for that.


"Peace is a prerequisite for food security, and the right to food is a basic human right," he added.

Sudan is highly dependent on agriculture, with nearly 65% of its population engaged in the sector. And it is this sector, rural livelihoods and agrifood systems that are on the front line of the conflict, suffering severe damage and disruption – with cascading and worrying consequences for food security and nutrition.

The agency underlined Sudan’s “high” dependence on agriculture, with nearly 65% of its population engaged in the sector, and said that rural livelihoods and agrifood systems are on the front line of the conflict.

The UN agency warned that food insecurity levels in the country are likely to be further exacerbated by above-average rainfall and higher-than-average temperatures predicted across southern and central states in Sudan due to the projected La Nina conditions from August–September.

The potential flooding may increase the risk of additional crop and livestock losses, while limited humanitarian access is worsening the food supply and increasing the risk of severe starvation, it said.

"Urgent, scaled-up action is immediately needed not only to reverse the shocking famine conditions in Darfur, but also to support acutely food insecure communities across Sudan," the UN agency said. "The international community cannot wait for famine declarations, rather it must act at scale and with urgency when based on warnings as a trigger for action," it added.

Sudan is experiencing the "worst levels" of acute food insecurity ever recorded, with 755,000 people facing starvation, according to the IPC.

Over half the population, 25.6 million people, are in crisis or worse conditions (IPC Phase 3 or above), while 755,000 people are facing "catastrophe" food insecurity (IPC Phase 5) in 10 states, including the five states of Greater Darfur, as well as South and North Kordofan, Blue Nile, Al Jazirah, and Khartoum states.