Sudan Conflict Claims 500+ Child Lives

Over four months since the civil war in Sudan erupted, it doesn’t seem to show any signs of ceasing or slowing down any time soon, with children emerging as the victims in growing numbers.

More than 500 children in Sudan have died from hunger, including two dozen babies, the leading children’s charity and aid organisation, Save the Children, has revealed.

In a state orphanage in Khartoum, the capital, at least 50 children died, following staff being unable to access the building, as a result of fighting. Amongst those who passed away were at least two dozen babies.

The British charity says, that, as a result of the conflict, 31’000 children are unable to receive treatment for malnutrition, due to health services closing down or having insufficient food supplies.

Read: Sudan crisis: 4 million displaced as conflict reaches 4th month

Since the war broke out in mid-April, Save the Children was forced to close down 57 of the nutrition facilities it runs across the country, leaving only 108 facilities operating. However, the agency says that therapeutic food stocks are running dangerously low, forcing them to use buffer stock or emergency supplies in the most severe cases.

Moreover, between April and July, in one state hospital in the eastern province of Qadarif, a minimum of 132 children died from malnutrition, making up a 36% death toll of all cases admitted to the hospital.

Across the southern White Nile province, 316 children, most of whom were under 5 years old, also died as a result of malnutrition between May and July.

More than 2’400 children with the deadliest form of malnutrition, severe acute malnutrition, had to be admitted to nutrition facilities since the start of the year.

An essential supply for treating malnutrition, a high-calorie peanut paste known as “Plumpy’Nut” and “Plumpy’Sup” paste, has nearly exhausted all of its supplies in Sudan.

In May, the only factory which manufactured “Plumpy’Nut”, and produced 6o% of nutritional treatments for children in Sudan, was burned to the ground.

The factory used to supply to aid agencies like Save the Children and the World Food Program (WFP), and had been producing about 10’000 tons of the peanut paste every year.

The Country Director for Save the Children in Sudan, Dr. Arif Noor, said: “Never did we think we would see children dying from hunger in such numbers, but this is now the reality in Sudan.”

“Seriously ill children are arriving in the arms of desperate mothers and fathers at nutrition centres across the country, and our staff have few options on how to treat them. We are seeing children dying from entirely preventable hunger”, he added.

Since 15th April, when the fighting erupted between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the country has been plunged into chaos.

The UN has stated that over 4.5 million people inside and outside Sudan have been displaced, according to the International Organisation for Migration Displacement Tracking Matrix (IOMDTM).

The OCHA Financial Tracking Service shows that the conflict is only 27% funded, having received $580.8 million.

Also Read: Pregnant Sudanese woman left in desert following arrest

Save the Children/UN/OCHA/Reuters