Livelihoods Destroyed, Hunger Growing
The nutrition situation in Sudan is deteriorating rapidly. Agriculture is nearly at a standstill as fields remain fallow, crops are failing, and markets have been destroyed. In the Zamzam camp in North Darfur alone, nearly one million people are suffering from the suspension of food aid.
“Without safe supply routes, hunger and malnutrition threaten to strike at nearly inconceivable levels. Children, pregnant women, and the elderly are particularly at risk. Welthungerhilfe provided aid to the Zamzam camp until January, when the last access route was blocked. We are ready to resume our support, but humanitarian corridors are urgently needed for us to regain access to the camp. The necessity of humanitarian corridors was further underlined last weekend, when attacks on the camp caused hundreds of deaths, including among humanitarian aid workers. The international community cannot allow itself to keep standing by as this humanitarian disaster escalates”, warns Mogge.
Blocked Aid, Low Funds
Welthungerhilfe has been active in Sudan since 1998, saving lives through its support. However, bureaucratic hurdles and targeted blockades are making the work of humanitarian organizations significantly more difficult, for instance by hindering food distribution or by exposing aid workers to great danger. At the same time, international aid programs are drastically underfunded, especially after the USAID cuts.
“The need is immense, but the money is not there. For millions of civilians, humanitarian aid is the only remaining lifeline. It is therefore necessary to restore unhindered and secure access to people in the hardest-hit areas of North Darfur, including the camps of Zamzam, Abushouk, and Al-Salam as well as the cities of El Fasher, Mellit, and Kutum. The international donor conference in London must make concrete commitments in order to ensure that vital aid reaches the most vulnerable people unhindered and quickly—before the rainy season makes access to some areas impossible,” says Mathias Mogge, adding, “At the same time, pressure must be exerted on all conflict parties to immediately stop military attacks on civilian facilities.”
