Can Sudan’s next generation survive the onslaught of war-induced famine?

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported that due to the ongoing conflicted in Sudan, three United Nations agencies—UNICEF, WFP, and WHO—have issued warnings over the worsening nutrition conditions for women and children there.

According to the report, malnutrition has gone worse by the violence because it restricts access to wholesome food, clean water, and sanitary facilities while raising the risk of illness.

Severe malnutrition is endangering the lives and prospects of countless mothers and children in Sudan, making the situation dire.

The arguments

The ongoing war in Sudan is so grave that it is stripping families of essential resources for survival, exacerbating the malnutrition crisis.

The UN agencies, thus, argue that urgent humanitarian access is essential to deliver food, water, and medical care to children and mothers. On the long-term consequences, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stressed that “Malnutrition is not a one-time crisis. Malnourished children face a lifetime of developmental challenges and ill-health and are also more likely to die from infectious diseases”.

He stressed that although WHO is working to mitigate the situation, “we need sustained humanitarian access and full financial backing to be able to do this.”

WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain, on the other hand reiterated that international action is necessary to prevent the world’s largest hunger emergency.

UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell stresses that children need peace to ensure their survival and development. “When children suffer from serious forms of malnutrition, it harms their physical and cognitive development and can leave life-long damage. Parties to the conflict must urgently allow humanitarian access so children can receive food, water, medical care and shelter. But most of all, children need peace.”

With regards to data gaps and accessibility, the lack of data due to restricted access to conflict areas indicates severe humanitarian access issues, the reason UN agencies are calling for all possible measures to reach those in need.

The lean season and below-normal agricultural production due to conflict have also heightened the urgency for immediate support.

The facts

In Sudan, malnutrition is a serious threat to life, increasing a child’s risk of death over peers who eat well by up to 11 times. This may result in a generation lost and long-lasting harm to cognitive and physical development.

According to a UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) nutrition vulnerability analysis, the rate of acute malnutrition among children under five in Central Darfur is 15.6%, whereas it is almost 30% in the ZamZam camp.

33% of expectant and nursing mothers in the ZamZam camp are undernourished, endangering both their own and their children’s health.

The report went on to say that by isolating populations and reducing food supplies, the impending wet and lean seasons will exacerbate the issue.

UN agencies have called for call for immediate, unimpeded humanitarian access and a ceasefire to prevent further deterioration.