Over a million people in South Sudan are at risk of severe hunger — again.
And while hunger has always been an issue for the young country, the link between it
and conflict means that more South Sudanese are hungry now -- more than ever before
So for this episode of NowThis World, we’ve come to The Kakuma Refugee camp in northern
Kenya, just 80 miles away from South Sudan’s border, to speak to refugees who’ve recently
fled fled the country.
We see children who are malnourished.
We see adults who are not getting the right amount of nutrition.
Hunger isn’t a new issue for this country.
It has experienced waves of drought, famine and severe hunger as recently as 2017.
But these issues have only been exacerbated by the country’s civil war.
In 2013, just two years after South Sudan became independent, then-president Salva Kiir
dissolved his entire cabinet and accused then-Vice President Riek Machar of planning a failed
coup.
Salva Kiir is an ethnic Dinka, the country’s largest group, while Machar is from Nuer,
the second largest community.
The political quarrel eventually turned into ethnic violence.
The fighting has displaced over 4 million South Sudanese, exacerbated human needs and
halted relief operations.
As fighting between groups spreads across the country it hasn’t only prevented the
transportation of food -- but harvesting in general.
One challenge the nation faces every year are the seasons.
South Sudanese rely on their dry seasons for harvest and refer to the rainy season as the
hunger season, because it’s the time they rely on stored food before the next harvest.
Up to 95% of people in South Sudan are dependent on climate sensitive activities for their
livelihoods, like agriculture, forestry resources and fisheries.
Some experts blame climate change for increased drought and flooding, which inundated the
lowlands and afflicted its highlands.
In addition to climate, infrastructure is also a significant issue for the country -- which
makes food transportation nearly impossible during certain seasons.
There is no road, and even where there is road, during rainy season it’s impossible
because it’s not perfect road that everyone is thinking.
It’s quite muddy so the car cannot go.
If you have food which is available in Juba and if you wanted to take it to Bantu, you
will not be able to do this because there is no way that you can carry the food.
To add to this problem that some people come and attack you and burn your crops.
And that has made this year’s harvest The smallest on record since the country was formed
in 2011.
In January this year, when harvests are supposed to be plentiful in the country, one million
people were already ‘food insecure,’ a 40 percent increase from the same time last
year.
Aid groups say that if funding and awareness remain low on this crisis,
7.1 million South Sudanese are projected to face severe food insecurity during this year’s
hunger season.
And consistent fighting has also crippled South Sudan’s economy -- making the the
food that is available in the country increasingly unaffordable.
In 2018, over 4 million South Sudanese were displaced due to hunger and war.
While a large number of displaced people relocate to other parts of South Sudan.
Some are forced to seek refugee in neighboring countries like Uganda, Ethiopia, and here
in Kenya.
Even when refugees make it to places like Kakuma, they often find harsh living conditions
in camps that don’t have enough resources to accommodate them.
We’re here at Kakuma’s reception center to meet with new arrivals from South Sudan.
This is the place where they become refugees.
I spoke an aid worker who was here in 2014 after the war broke out.
So here in Kakuma reception center we had over a thousand people coming in everyday,
and it was really sad to see hundreds of people seated on the ground, not enough space to
accommodate them, not enough space in the camp to have them moved, so they would stay
here, for months until a place could be found for them to stay in the camps.
There are over 180,000 refugees in kakuma, and over 50% are from South Sudan.
And they’re the only ones that get instant refugee status.
And that is because the South Sudan situation is known globally as the largest crisis we’re
facing right now in the region.
And so whenever a South Sudanese person crosses a border into a country they’re automatically
treated as a refugee.
Even when these refugees make it into the camps, hunger is still an issue for them.
Just last year, aid organizations had to cut refugee food rations in Kenya by 30% due to
a lack of adequate funding.
People say, ‘yeah, Africa is the same thing over and over again,’ without acknowledging
what is actually going on.
But as I said, think about the children.
Think about the mothers.
And they’re the victims.
They are not fighting, they are the victims.
If the funding is being cut, that means less food for those vulnerable.
Less assistance for those vulnerable.
The UN Refugee Agency says it needs 841 million US Dollars to address this crisis but only
8% of that, 69 Million, has been received.
One thing that I can definitely tell you, is don’t forget the South Sudanese.
They are just like you.
They are mothers and children who want to survive.
That’s all they want.
Over the past few years, a number of peace talks have been held with little results .
Although ending the war may not solve all food insecurity issues in the country, one
thing is clear, the war ending would be a step in the right direction.
Hey guys.
So as you saw in this video South Sudan is one of the most prominent refugees crisis
of our time.
But what are some of the other refugee crisis that you want us to pay attention to?
Comment below and let us know.