UN steps up food aid to hard-to-reach areas

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announced on November 22 that it is stepping up its operations across Sudan to reach millions of people in the most isolated and needy conflict zones in the African country.

WFP food aid vehicle in Sudan. (Source: WFP)

The first aid convoy since August has reached Zamzam refugee camp in North Darfur state, western Sudan, marking an important milestone in the food aid campaign in the country, according to the WFP.

This is the first convoy to reach the area since famine was officially declared in August this year. Meanwhile, other aid convoys are still on their way to other hard-to-reach areas, aiming to address severe food insecurity in many parts of the country.

According to WFP, more than 700 trucks carrying food aid are heading to areas across Sudan, including 14 areas classified as "hotspots" due to extremely severe food insecurity and the risk of famine. These convoys will deliver about 17,500 tons of food, enough to feed 1.5 million people for a month. This is a significant effort by the international community to reduce the damage caused by the humanitarian crisis in Sudan.

Since September, WFP has been providing food aid to around 2 million people every month across Sudan. However, the situation is increasingly dire, with nearly 50% of Sudan’s population facing “catastrophic hunger” – the highest stage of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) food security scale. This affects millions of people, as Sudan continues to be a global hotspot for hunger and food insecurity.

According to a report from the Sudanese government, 28.9 million people in the country are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance. This figure indicates the severity of the crisis, especially when the country has been torn apart by a conflict between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2023.

The conflict has left more than 24,850 people dead, while more than 14 million people have been internally displaced and millions more have sought refuge in neighboring countries.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/nan-doi-o-sudan-lien-hop-quoc-tang-cuong-vien-tro-luong-thuc-toi-nhung-khu-vuc-kho-tiep-can-294870.html