Food & nutrition crisis deepens across Sudan as famine identified in additional areas | FAO News

Rome/New York – Four months after famine was first confirmed in Zamzam camp in Sudan’s North Darfur state, more areas in North Darfur & the Western Nuba mountains have been identified as experiencing famine conditions, as access to food & nutrition for millions of people across the country continues to deteriorate, the Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO,) World Food Programme (WFP) & UNICEF warned today.

The latest Famine Review Committee (FRC)* report & new projections from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC)* identify famine with reliable data in at least five areas of Sudan – Zamzam, Abu Shouk & Al Salam camps in North Darfur, & in the Western Nuba Mountains for both residents & internally displaced persons (IDPs). Famine is projected in five additional areas between December 2024 & May 2025 – Um Kadadah, Melit, El Fasher, At Tawisha & Al Lait in North Darfur. The report also highlights the risk of famine across 17 more areas during the same period.

More than 24.6 million people across Sudan—more than half of the population analyzed—are now experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above.) This includes 8.1 million in Emergency conditions (IPC Phase 4) & at least 638,000 people in IPC Phase 5 (Catastrophe.)

These findings mark an alarming escalation of hunger & malnutrition during what is typically the harvest season, when food availability should be at its highest. The FRC’s classification of increasing hunger in such a season indicates that the harvest is not reaching everywhere given the continued conflict that limits markets & movement of goods. Without immediate, unhindered humanitarian access & urgent international support, famine risks spreading further in 2025, threatening the lives of millions of people, mainly children, & exacerbating what is already one of the world’s most severe food crises.

Conflict, displacement, & restricted humanitarian access remain the primary drivers of this crisis. In North Darfur’s Zamzam camp, where famine was first confirmed in August 2024, conditions remain critical despite some humanitarian food assistance deliveries. Sustained violence & economic hardship have disrupted markets, displaced millions, & driven prices of staple goods to unaffordable levels for most people.

The next hunger season is projected to begin well before the upcoming rains – the period between harvests when food insecurity typically rises – with humanitarian access hindered by both man-made blockages & logistical challenges. Immediate action to preposition supply stocks is critical to preventing human suffering on an unprecedented scale.

Furthermore, areas of intense conflict, including parts of Khartoum & Al Jazeera, may already be experiencing famine conditions (IPC Phase 5). However, a lack of reliable or recent data from these areas makes it impossible to confirm. This underscores the urgent need for further assessments to confirm the extent of the crisis & provide urgently needed humanitarian assistance.

The agencies urge the international community to prioritize funding for humanitarian efforts & leverage diplomatic channels to secure a ceasefire & unrestricted access. It is imperative that all parties to the conflict ensure safe, immediate, unhindered access to areas classified as IPC Phase 3 & above. Without immediate action, Sudan’s crisis threatens to escalate further in 2025, with millions more at risk.

“FAO is deeply concerned about the worsening food security situation in the Sudan, particularly in Zamzam IDP camp & other settlements in conflict-affected areas, where conditions are rapidly deteriorating, & more people are sliding into emergency or famine conditions,” said FAO’s Director of Emergencies & Resilience, Rein Paulsen. “We must stop famine in the Sudan – it can be done. We need immediate & unimpeded humanitarian access to deliver food, water, health & life-saving emergency agricultural assistance to pull people from the brink. Above all, the immediate cessation of hostilities is an essential first step. We must act now, collectively, & at scale, for the sake of millions of people whose lives are at risk.”

“A protracted famine is taking hold in Sudan,” said WFP’s Director of Food Security & Nutrition analysis, Jean-Martin Bauer. “People are getting weaker & weaker & are dying as they have had little to no access to food for months & months. WFP is doing everything we can to get a steady & constant flow of food assistance to the hungriest & hardest to reach places in Sudan. We are constantly adapting our operations as the conflict evolves, delivering assistance where & when we can. But recent operational progress is fragile as the situation on the ground is volatile & dangerous.”

“The ongoing conflict, continuous displacements & recurrent disease outbreaks have created a dangerous breeding ground for malnutrition in Sudan,” said UNICEF Director of Emergency Operations, Lucia Elmi. “Millions of young lives hang in the balance. The delivery of life-saving therapeutic food, water & medicine can help stop the deadly malnutrition crisis in its tracks, but we need safe, sustained, & unimpeded access to reach the most vulnerable children & save lives.”

UNICEF, WFP, & FAO continue to ramp up their humanitarian response in Sudan, focusing on high-risk areas with integrated health, nutrition, WASH, social protection & food security interventions.

Operational responses:

FAO:

While scaling up food, water & cash assistance is crucial for those facing severe food shortages, it is not enough to meet the needs of people experiencing hunger. Even in situations where humanitarian access is lacking or people are displaced, emergency agricultural interventions can be the difference between life & death – by enabling people to produce food locally & access nutritious food to survive. FAO is focusing on supporting local food production of essential cereals like sorghum & millet; & providing emergency livestock & fishery supplies, along with veterinary services, to protect animals that serve as vital sources of protein & nutrition. For the past summer planting season, despite logistical challenges & security & access constraints, FAO & its partners distributed more than 5 000 MT of seeds, reaching almost 550 000 households, equivalent to around 2.7 million people. However, limited access & insufficient funding continue to pose significant challenges, especially as the conflict continues to spread across different parts of the country & forces people to flee their homes.

WFP:

WFP has delivered food assistance to more than 800,000 people in famine & famine risk areas across war-torn Sudan since recently launching a large-scale surge in food aid. This includes around 135,000 people in Zamzam camp since September with both WFP food trucked into the camp & commodity vouchers for locally sourced food. Another WFP convoy is on its way to Zamzam camp via the Adre border crossing in Chad with more planned.

WFP is pushing to get vital food & nutrition assistance to embattled locations across Darfur, Kordofan, Khartoum &  Al Jazeera. WFP provided food, cash & nutrition assistance to 2.8 million people countrywide in October – the highest number recorded for any given month since the start of the conflict in mid-April 2023. Yet, this progress could be quickly undone as fighting escalates once again across Sudan.

UNICEF:

UNICEF is scaling up its lifesaving preventative & curative nutrition interventions in Sudan, integrating them with health, water & sanitation, & other services, & focusing on localities experiencing extremely high & rising levels of malnutrition & food insecurity. Between January & November 2024, 6.7 million children under five were screened for malnutrition, & more than 415,772 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition were treated, which represents 74 percent of the annual target. Over 861,000 caregivers of children aged 0-24 months received counselling on infant & young child feeding. Despite access constraints, significant scale up of nutrition interventions was achieved through more than 1,900 health facilities & 82 mobile teams, & the partnership with State Ministries of Health & 41 NGOs across Sudan.

Notes for Editors:

*The FRC is an independent ad hoc specialized committee consisting of a panel of international technical experts in the areas of food security, livelihoods, nutrition & health. The committee is activated by the IPC Global Support Unit (GSU) when there is a need to independently review IPC analysis findings to support quality assurance & technical consensus building in situations when there is a potential or already identified IPC Famine classification or a breakdown in consensus regarding a potential IPC Famine classification. The FRC provides recommendations to the IPC country Technical Working Group (TWG) or analysis team, & the IPC GSU serves as the chair, secretariat & provides coordination support to the FRC. Find out more here.

*The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) is an innovative multi-partner initiative for improving food security & nutrition analysis & decision-making. By using the IPC classification & analytical approach, Governments, UN Agencies, NGOs, civil society & other relevant actors, work together to determine the severity & magnitude of acute & chronic food insecurity, & acute malnutrition situations in a country, according to internationally-recognised scientific standards. Find out more here.

About FAO

The Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a specialized agency that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. It aims at transforming agrifood systems, making them more efficient, inclusive, resilient & sustainable for better production, better nutrition, a better environment & a better life, leaving no-one behind. FAO’s goal is to achieve food security for all & make sure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives.

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The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies & using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability & prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters & the impact of climate change.

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About UNICEF

UNICEF, the United Nations agency for children, works to protect the rights of every child, everywhere, especially the most disadvantaged children & in the toughest places to reach. Across more than 190 countries & territories, we do whatever it takes to help children survive, thrive, & fulfil their potential. 

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