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UN aid agencies
have downgraded the severity of famine that had been gripping parts of
South Sudan. But there are still higher than ever levels of extreme
hunger across the country.
The situation in
South Sudan would appear to have improved. "The accepted technical
definition of famine no longer applies in former Unity State's Leer and
Mayanditcounties where famine was declared in February," said a joint
statement released Wednesday by the UN children's agency UNICEF, the
World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agricultural Organisation
(FAO).
Famine is defined
according to UN criteria called the Integrated Food Security Phase
Classification, or IPC scale. It is declared when a region has 20
percent of households facing a complete lack of food, 30 percent of the
population is suffering from acute malnutrition and 1 person for every
5,000 dies each day.
While the official
famine may be over, the situation remains precarious. "The crisis is not
over. We are merely keeping people alive but far too many face extreme
hunger on the edge of a cliff," said Dominique Burgeon, the FAO's
director of emergencies.
Extreme hunger
The main concern is
for people living in the country's east, bordering Ethiopia, in an area
that used to be known as Jonglei state. It is believed that around
45,000 people here are facing famine-like conditions.
"The
conflict-related displacement of over 200,000 people from northern,
central, and eastern former Jonglei has severely disrupted livelihoods
and access to social services, thus severely undermining food security
in the state," UN aid agencies said.
"The number of
people struggling to find enough food each day has grown to 6 million -
up from 4.9 million in February - and is the highest level of food
insecurity ever experienced in South Sudan," the statement added.
The human cost of civil war
The humanitarian
crisis across the country has been directly caused by the civil war that
began in 2013 after President Salva Kiir accused his rival and former
deputy, Riek Machar, of plotting a coup against him.
The violence was
originally between ethnic Dinka Kiir supporters and ethnic Nuer
supporters of Machar. But it has since engulfed other areas of the
country and involved other ethnic groups. It has prevented many farmers
from planting and harvesting their crops and hyperinflation, which
reached more than 800 percent last year, has meant that the cost of
imported food is unaffordable for most people.
This situation has since triggered Africa's largest refugee crisis, with nearly 2 million people having fled abroad.
Meanwhile, there
would appear to be no prospect of peace in sight. Further, the UN has
warned that acts of genocide and ethnic cleaning may have been carried
out.
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