U.N. warns of confirmed famine in parts of Sudan as WFP scales up response

U.N. humanitarian officials warned that Sudan remains the only country in the world with a confirmed famine and said the World Food Programme is scaling up operations to reach people in Khartoum and Darfur.

The briefing said nearly 25,000,000 men, women and children — roughly half of Sudan’s population — are facing acute hunger, and nearly 5,000,000 children and breastfeeding mothers are acutely malnourished. U.N. staff said about 450,000 people are already facing famine conditions in areas such as Zamzam Camp and that many have fled in recent weeks.

WFP operations: The agency’s country emergency coordinator, Samantha Chataraj, returned from Khartoum and is working to scale up food and nutrition assistance to about 1,000,000 people across Greater Khartoum in the coming months. The briefing said additional trucks carrying 1,600 metric tons of food and nutrition supplies for roughly 220,000 people have started to arrive in Tawela in North Darfur, and a convoy from Port Sudan is on its way to El Fasher with 1,000 metric tons for about 10,000 people.

Why it matters: The U.N. stressed that these deliveries represent a small fraction of what is required to meet needs across the country. Humanitarian staff are preparing mobile warehouses in Tawela to increase storage and pre-stock food ahead of the rainy season, when roads become impassable.

Funding and scale: The briefing said many responses remain under-resourced and that the current mobilization is insufficient relative to need. The report did not specify new funding commitments but emphasized operational moves to reach populations where possible.