Violent clashes that erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan since mid-April have forced 259,451 individuals into South Sudan, the UN humanitarian agency has said.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Sundat warned that more people were expected to arrive as the fighting continued, Xinhua news agency reported.

“Additional resources are needed to deal with the multiple consequences of flooding, including to prevent disease outbreaks,” the OCHA said in its latest response report released in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.

It said the Joda/Renk border remains the main point of entry for about 97 per cent of new arrivals, including returnees, refugees and asylum-seekers.

The OCHA said the flooding in Renk has worsened an existing situation for people and significantly limited physical access to key areas, including the airport, Zero (an informal settlement), Paloich, Melut and beyond.

The UN agency said it has revised its emergency response plan for the Sudan crisis and requires 356 million U.S. dollars from May to December to address people’s critical priorities, including onward transport assistance to preferred final destinations, life-saving humanitarian assistance on arrival and during transit, targeting 600,000 individuals.

According to the OCHA, the World Food Program requires 139.4 million dollars to provide life-saving food and nutrition assistance for new arrivals and support the humanitarian response through the UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) and the logistics cluster by the end of the year.

On September 6, the UN agencies said that funding shortfalls have forced them to scale down their humanitarian response toward millions of vulnerable people in need of food and other life-saving assistance in South Sudan. The agencies said that dwindling resources amid growing needs have forced humanitarian agencies to prioritize the delivery of vital life-saving support which risks leaving millions behind.

The OCHA also said it has paused the general onward transportation from Joda to Renk town on September 3 due to temporary funding constraints.

Between September 3 and 10, the OCHA said only one minibus specifically dedicated to vulnerable individuals and one vehicle for medical referrals and transportation for those in urgent need of care are available. 

(This article has been published via a syndicated feed)