The ongoing conflict in Sudan poses a grave threat to food security, according to a United Nations official. Yang Hongjie, the representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in Sudan, emphasized that the situation is dire, with approximately 17.7 million people experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity between October 2023 and February 2024 – the highest number ever recorded during a harvest season.
In an interview with Xinhua, Yang highlighted that conflict is the primary driver of this hunger crisis, with nine out of ten people facing acute food insecurity residing in conflict hotspots, particularly in the Darfur and Kordofan regions, as well as the states of Khartoum and Gezira.
Of particular concern is the escalation of fighting in Gezira state, known as the breadbasket of Sudan, where about 50 percent of wheat production and 10 percent of sorghum production for the entire country originates. This escalation poses a significant threat to national food production.
Yang painted a bleak outlook for food production in 2024, emphasizing the urgent need for agricultural support. He underscored the importance of multi-sectoral famine prevention efforts spearheaded by the FAO and its partners at the country level.
While acknowledging the critical role of scaling up life-saving food or cash assistance to populations facing acute food shortages, Yang emphasized that this alone is insufficient to address the gaps created by the lack of local food production.
The FAO has developed an emergency plan for Sudan in 2024, budgeted at $104 million, but Yang lamented that the plan is currently less than 10 percent funded. He revealed that sorghum, millet, and wheat production in 2023 was estimated at about 4.1 million tons, marking a significant decrease of 46 percent from the previous year.
In response to the crisis, the FAO prioritizes integrated approaches aimed at enabling local food production of key staple cereals, providing livestock and fishery supplies, and offering veterinary services and vaccinations to pave the way for recovery.
