Food rations drastically cut in Darfur

Millions of vulnerable people in the western Sudanese region of Darfur and eastern Sudan will receive half-rations of food beginning on Monday, due to a significant shortfall in funding, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said.

By reducing the daily rations to as little as 1,050 kilocalories - half the minimum daily requirement of 2,100 kilocalories per person - the limited food stocks in the region would last longer during the "hunger season," the annual pre-harvest period from July to September, when needs are the greatest.

"It is dramatic. We have only received 32 percent of what we need to feed 6.1 million people during the height of the hunger season," said Peter Smerdon, WFP senior public affairs officer.

Aid agencies are particularly concerned about the effect of reduced rations in Darfur, where rampant insecurity and continued displacement cause enormous suffering. "Food must come first. We cannot put families who have lost their homes and loved ones to violence on a 1,000-calorie-a-day diet," said James Morris, WFP executive director.

For the time being, food rations would not be cut in south Sudan, where most people on food assistance are already receiving only 50 percent or 75 percent of their normal rations. "This will increase malnutrition rates, which is a complete and utter waste of what we did last year, when we managed to bring down malnutrition rates by half [in Darfur]," Smerdon said.

WFP warned it had been impossible to procure and pre-position enough food for full rations for hundreds of thousands of people in areas that would be inaccessible by road during the June-September rainy season.

"We’re not crying wolf. This is a very real crisis, and it is undoubtedly going to be very painful," Smerdon said. "We hope that donors will come up with cash soon, so that we can restore full rations."