Food Crisis and Acute Hunger in Sudan

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UN World Food Program (WFP) have been warning of rapid deterioration in conditions for the people of Sudan.

A little over a year of conflict in Sudan has created the world’s largest hunger crisis in the country, inflicting over 21 million people (nearly half of the country’s population) with high levels of food insecurity, as reported by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).

Based on the ICP projections, the affected population includes nearly 109,000 facing famine conditions, with 6.38 million facing emergency levels and nearly 14.6 million facing crisis levels of hunger. Together, this accounts for 45% of the country’s population, and an additional 37% (approximately 17.5 million people) are facing a slighter – but still significant – level of food insecurity.

Hunger was an issue in Sudan even before conflict broke out in April 2023, with approximately 5.9 million Sudanese facing chronic hunger at the end of 2019. At the end of 2022, one year into a shift in political leadership and amid ongoing instability and uncertainty, the IPC estimated that as many as 11.7 million people were facing food insecurity, representing a nearly 100% increase in hunger levels pre-pandemic, and a 225% increase compared to 2016.

The crisis in Sudan escalated on April 15, 2023, with violent clashes between rival factions in the capital of Khartoum leading to a nationwide conflict and massive displacement, both within Sudan and in neighboring Chad. Displacement, disease outbreaks, hunger, and restricted humanitarian access created a lethal combination for a conflict-induced famine and a catastrophic loss of civilians’ lives, especially children.

For those remaining in Sudan, food shortages have become a fact of life. The Food and Agriculture Organization estimations show that food production fell by 46% in the first year of the conflict as people were driven from their homes or unable to safely work their farms. As a result, the food available in the country became too expensive for many of the most vulnerable Sudanese families, particularly those displaced by conflict. People have been even forced to sell off their assets to buy food for their families and many have been totally reliant on aid to have just one meal a day.

In 2024, 750000 people experienced catastrophic levels of food insecurity so severe that people starved to death daily. Famine has been confirmed in specific areas and will spread across Sudan if fighting does not stop. Adding insult to injury, the rainfall has been below-average this year in the country, further impacting crops, livestock, and the availability of water.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UN World Food Program (WFP) have been warning of rapid deterioration in conditions for the people of Sudan, particularly children, as food security is torn apart by war that has ravaged the country for more than a year.

An immediate ceasefire and renewed international efforts – both diplomatic and financial – as well as unhindered and sustained humanitarian access, are urgently needed to enable the humanitarian response to be further expanded and to allow the agencies to deliver at the speed needed.

References
www.unicef.org/emergencies/emergency-response-sudan?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAjeW6BhBAEiwAdKltMsT6VIic3XppPWw53-UTb20RAD5gXMA_6_FdN3uKhLIo90KnHw0dLBoCMSAQAvD_BwE
www.rescue.org/article/top-10-crises-world-cant-ignore-2025#:~:text=In%202024%2C%20750%2C000%20people%20experienced,has%20crippled%20Sudan’s%20health%20system.
www.unicef.org/press-releases/sudan-facing-unprecedented-hunger-catastrophe-say-un-agency-chiefs
www.concern.net/news/hunger-in-sudan