An independent group of food security experts says war-torn Sudan is heading for an “escalating famine crisis” due to increased food shortages and acute malnutrition.
Famine has spread across five regions, with 24.6 million people – nearly half the population – in urgent need of food, experts said.
The hunger crisis stems from the 20-month civil war that has ravaged Sudan.
Various mediation efforts to end the conflict between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have so far failed.
The army and the RSF staged a joint coup in 2021, but a power struggle between their commanders plunged the country into civil war in 2023.
The UN-backed Women’s Review Committee (FRC) has warned that a “major catastrophe” could loom if the conflict is not ended.
The committee is affiliated with the Integrated Food Phase Classification (IPC), a global initiative by United Nations agencies, aid groups and governments to identify famine conditions.
According to Reuters, Sudan’s military-backed government announced on Monday that it was suspending cooperation with the group, accusing it of “discrediting reports that Sudanese undermines sovereignty and dignity” is issuing.
The IPC first identified the famine in August in the Zamzam camp in Sudan’s Darfur region, where nearly half a million people are taking refuge.
In his latest reportThe FRC said the famine has now affected the Abu Shouk and Salam camps in Darfur’s besieged city of al-Fishar, as well as two areas in South Kordofan state.
“Famine is the most extreme manifestation of human suffering, representing the catastrophic depletion of systems and resources essential for survival,” the FRC said.
“It is not just lack of food but a deep breakdown of health, livelihoods and social infrastructure, leaving the entire community in a state of despair,” he added.
The FRC has predicted that five more regions of Darfur could face famine by May, and that it is at risk of spreading to 17 other regions.
It added that “in areas where conflict intensity is high, hostilities have adversely affected farming activities, resulting in farmers abandoning their crops, looting and stock destruction”.
Both Darfur and South Kordofan have been hit by the worst violence, with scores of civilians killed, raped and kidnapped by gunmen.
In May, the US special envoy to Sudan, Tom Perillo, said some estimates put the death toll at 150,000 in the fighting across the country.