March 03, 2025 09:49 pm (IST)
Follow us:
facebook-white sharing button
twitter-white sharing button
instagram-white sharing button
youtube-white sharing button
Indian woman facing death row in UAE for killing a child has been executed: Foreign ministry tells court | Crucial to have Trump’s support, says Zelenskyy a day after fiery White House exchange | 'We're looking for peace, Zelenskyy wants Russia-Ukraine war to continue': Donald Trump after White House public spat | Volodymyr Zelenskyy refuses to apologise to Donald Trump after public spat over Russia-Ukraine war | 'Make a deal or we are out': Donald Trump tells Volodymyr Zelenskyy at White House | Himachal govt seeks fund from temple to support welfare schemes, BJP calls move 'shocking' | Injustice to opposition MLAs: Atishi writes to Delhi Assembly Speaker on suspension of 21 AAP lawmakers | We will leave for US tomorrow: Father of Indian student Neelam Shinde after urgent visa grant | 'Not joining BJP or floating any party': Abhishek Banerjee dismisses rumours of his split from TMC | Pune bus rape accused arrested after 75-hour manhunt

South Sudan: UN agency urges stability ahead of planting season to thwart food insecurity

| | Jul 17, 2016, at 01:52 pm
New York, July 17 (Just Earth News): Millions of people facing hunger in South Sudan will be driven to the brink of catastrophe if renewed flashes of violence derail the fragile peace process, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Saturday, warning that the human costs of recent fighting in Juba will be compounded by deepening hunger across the entire country if peace does not hold.


“In Juba, which hasn't experienced such a level of violence in years, a fragile calm now appears to be holding, but uncertainty grips the city and supplies to food markets have been disrupted,” said FAO Country Representative Serge Tissot.

“And while we hope that the situation will hold, violence may flare up again. If the tenuous peace process falters, the consequences will be widespread and an already dire situation, in which over half the nation's population is food insecure, could get much, much worse,” he added.

The most recent assessment, released last month, showed South Sudan was already in dire straits, with more than 4.8 million people severely food insecure and malnutrition rates rampant. The assessment projected severe food shortages over the months to come and warned of the risk of hunger crises in parts of the country.

A return to stability and the continuation of the peace process are essential to allowing agricultural production to continue and markets to open, emphasized FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva.

“The people of the world's youngest nation cannot afford any further instability,” said  Graziano da Silva, adding: “We have to remember that peace and food security are two sides of the same coin – it's the currency that drives development and prosperity. The future of the country depends on the people of South Sudan making a firm and lasting commitment to peace, now.”

Looted agricultural inputs need replacing

FAO is currently assessing the full extent of losses incurred following the violence that erupted last week, when its Juba warehouse was ransacked and stocks of essential supplies like seeds and tools earmarked to help food-insecure people across the country save their livelihoods were looted.

“As the FAO offices in South Sudan remain operational, the continuation of our support to those most in need requires that additional resources be urgently made available to replace what was looted,” said  Tissot.

“Under normal conditions, harvesting of the main maize and sorghum crop would begin in a few weeks' time – planting of a second season would take place over the same period. How well those activities are able to proceed will have a big impact on food security in both the short and the longer term,” he added.

The recent clashes between opposition and government forces have been the most violent in Juba since the end of the country's two-year civil war in August 2015.

Photo: UNICEF South Sudan

 

Source: www.justearthnews.com

 

Support Our Journalism

We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism

IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.

Support objective journalism for a small contribution.