UN Official: 4 Demands to Combat Famine in Sudan

Moatinoon – Agencies
A UN official outlined four demands on Tuesday to combat famine in Sudan, while another official warned of potential regional repercussions.

This occurred during a session of the United Nations Security Council to discuss the situation in Sudan, where the Council heard briefings from Edem Wosornu, Director of Operations and Advocacy at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, and Stephen Omolo, Assistant Executive Director of the World Food Programme.

Wosornu stated that "26 million people in Sudan are suffering from acute hunger, and 10 million people have been forced to flee their homes due to violence, hunger, and deprivation. This includes 726,000 people who have been displaced within and outside Sennar State since June 25, following the advance of the Rapid Support Forces into the state."

Since mid-April 2023, the army and the "Rapid Support Forces" have been engaged in a conflict that has resulted in approximately 18,800 deaths and around 10 million displaced persons and refugees, according to the United Nations.

Regarding the famine in the Zamzam camp in El Fasher city, North Darfur state, Wosornu said, "When famine occurs, it means that we have been too late and have not done enough, and that we and the international community have failed."

She added that life-saving supplies in Port Sudan on the Red Sea are ready to be loaded and sent to the camp, including essential medicines, food supplies, and hygiene items.

She continued that relief supplies for the residents of Zamzam are readily available in eastern Chad, but heavy rains have flooded the Tina crossing, the only border crossing currently available for humanitarian agencies between eastern Chad and Darfur.

Wosornu identified four main demands to combat famine: first, to stop the conflict; second, for parties to fulfill their obligations under international humanitarian law; third, to achieve rapid, safe, and unobstructed humanitarian access throughout Sudan by all possible means; and finally, to provide more resources.

Regional Impacts
Stephen Omolo, Assistant Executive Director of the World Food Programme, warned that "if this humanitarian crisis does not receive the required political and diplomatic attention, it will have wider implications that threaten to destabilize the broader region."

He emphasized that "the confirmation of the presence of famine must serve as a wake-up call for the international community and members of the Security Council." He added that "all parties to the conflict are failing to meet their obligations and commitments under international humanitarian law."

He further stated, "Both sides of the conflict are obstructing requests for approvals to move across conflict lines, which severely limits the amount of aid passing through and prevents us from working on a large scale."

Omolo stressed "the urgent need for help from the Security Council to ensure that we can carry out our work effectively." He added, "Ending the ongoing famine requires political will and leadership, and the World Food Programme calls on the Security Council to provide it."

There are increasing UN and international calls to prevent a humanitarian disaster in Sudan that could drive millions into famine and death due to food shortages caused by the conflict, which has spread to 12 out of the countrys 18 states.