UN says South Sudan floods affect 1.4m, displace 379,00
Flooding in South Sudan is affecting around 1.4 million people, with more than 379,000 displaced, as reported by the Arab News via AFP on November 9th.
The information comes from a UN update that warned about the upsurge in malaria. Aid agencies have said the world’s youngest country, which is very vulnerable to climate change, is facing its worst flooding in decades, especially in its north.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said around 1.4 million people were affected by floods in 43 counties and the Abyei region, the sovereignty of which is a matter of dispute between South Sudan and Sudan. “Over 379,000 individuals are displaced in 22 counties and Abyei,” it added in a statement issued late on November 8th.
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It said that several states have reported a surge in malaria, that was “overwhelming the health system and exacerbating the situation and impact in flood-hit areas.” Since gaining independence from Sudan in 2011, South Sudan ahs been plagued by violence, instability and economic stagnation alongside climate disasters like droughts and floods.
Last month the World Bank said that the latest floods were “worsening an already critical humanitarian situation marked by severe food insecurity, economic decline, continued conflict, disease outbreaks, and the repercussions of the Sudan conflict,” which has seen several hundred thousand people pour into South Sudan.
The UN’s World Food Programme says South Sudan has more than seven million people facing food insecurity and 1.65 million malnourished children. It also faces another period of political instability after the presidential office extended transitional period agreed in a 2018 peace deal, putting elections off until 2026, which was reported on by AP at the time.
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UN envoy Nicholas Haysom described the delaying of the election as a “regrettable development.” All local and international parties involved “must collectively seize the opportunity to make this extension the last, and deliver the peace and democracy that the people of South Sudan deserve,” he added.
AFP, AP
