3.7 million children will suffer malnutrition in Sudan: UNICEF
June 27, 2024 (NEW YORK) – About 3.7 million children in war-torn Sudan are likely to suffer from acute malnutrition this year, with more than 730,000 children already facing severe acute malnutrition and an imminent risk of death without access to treatment, an official from the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) revealed.
The projected figure, UNICEF Director of Emergency Operations, Lucia Elmi said, is the highest in a decade.
“It is important to understand just how dangerous severe acute malnutrition is. It is life-threatening, making children up to 11 times more likely to die than their well-nourished peers. Even when children survive malnutrition, the effects on their physical and cognitive development can be lifelong and irreversible,” she said.
Already reported is the widespread food insecurity, which will have devastating effect on and create specific and distinctly chilling risks for children in Sudan.
“However, we also know how to treat these children and save their lives, and in response to the situation, UNICEF, together with partners is intensifying its efforts to prevent further deterioration. We have expanded our nutrition-focused partnerships to 152 localities, ensuring an operational presence in 93 priority areas,” explained Elmi.
UNICEF said it has in place more than 1,700 health facilities and 60 mobile teams and admitted more than 100,000 severely malnourished children this year alone.
“Additionally, we established 170 new nutrition sites and distributed Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) across 18 states of Sudan, enough to treat 180,000 children. Yet as today’s snapshot makes clear, despite these efforts, significant challenges remain, especially for children,” the senior UNICEF official said.
The ongoing war in Sudan has severely impacted the delivery of humanitarian supplies. Violence and bureaucratic hurdles impede access to conflict-affected areas, leaving countless women and children without vital nutritional support.
“As we face an ever-increasing risk of conflict-induced famine, the need for a comprehensive and well-funded response is critical. UNICEF and UN partners currently face significant funding gaps. For UNICEF alone, that is $120 million to fully implement our famine prevention plan. We count on a renewed and significant scaled-up support from donors, and, crucially, for pledges already made to come through without delay,” stressed Elmi.
Meanwhile appeals have been made to all parties in the conflict, and indeed all actors, to facilitate immediate, unimpeded, and consistent humanitarian access, through all possible crossline and cross-border routes so that children and their communities can receive the nutrition, water, medical care and needed shelter.
“Most importantly, children need peace – an immediate de-escalation of the situation in El Fasher and a nationwide ceasefire. Without peace, their chances of survival diminish, and the prospect for a brighter future remains a distant dream,” noted Elmi.
She added, “It is therefore vital that we all come together, as a global community, to address this crisis with the urgency and commitment it demands. The window to avert the worst is rapidly closing, and the lives of Sudan’s children depend on our collective action.”
Aid agencies say more than 25 million civilians in Sudan and fleeing the country are being starved and require urgent humanitarian assistance because of the war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
(ST)