600,000 people at immediate risk of starvation

The United Nations has warned the international community of an impending humanitarian catastrophe in Sudan. The warning was made in a press release issued by OCHA on Friday. The UN Consolidated Inter-Agency Appeal for Sudan, launched three months ago was recently revised to take account of the drought in central and western Sudan. The revised appeal calls for US $244 million in food and other assistance to meet the emergency needs of war and drought affected communities. Of the total targeted population of more than three million people, 600,000 are aid to be "at immediate risk". This requires urgent funding of US $60 million, according to the press release. The UN's Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs, Kenzo Oshima, has expressed deep concern about the very poor response from the international donor community to the critical humanitarian situation developing in the Sudan. To date, only about one percent of the necessary funding has been pledged by international donors. The press release notes that unless money is urgently pledged, WFP will be unable to feed people in need after March, with the critical hunger period beginning in April and May. UNICEF is in a similar position. The agency will be unable to continue with present levels of emergency intervention in water, sanitation and health sectors. A planed FAO vital seeds distribution programme is also threatened.