Sudan’s famine risk worsened by conflict, draught and funding shortages, report says

CAIRO (AP) – Conflict and drought are worsening food insecurity throughout parts of Sudan's Darfur and Kordofan regions, a global food crisis monitor cautioned on Monday.

What happened

As well as other locations, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC, there is a "deteriorating humanitarian situation" throughout greater Darfur and Kordofan, including areas identified as at risk of famine.

Severe drought linked to El Niño is affecting more than half of Sudan, causing localized crop failures and depriving households of food and income, it remarked.

In May, almost 19.5 million residents – more than 40% of the population – were facing high levels of acute food insecurity, according to an IPC assessment. Of those, 135, 000 were in Phase 5, the most severe classification, characterized by extreme food shortages, starvation, particularly high levels of malnutrition and deaths from disease or acute malnutrition.

The bottom line

In short, sudans famine risk worsened by conflict, draught and funding shortages, report says is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.