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After the unprecedented floods last summer, the people of Old Fangak, a small town in northern South Sudan, should be planting now. But the flood water has not receded, the people are still marooned and now they are facing severe hunger.Unusually heavy rains began last July, and the White Nile burst its banks, destr...

Internal reports show projected cuts including 59% in South Sudan, 60% in Somalia and 67% in SyriaSome of the poorest and most conflict-ridden countries in the world will have their UK aid programmes cut by more than half, according to a leaked report of discussions held in the last three weeks among Foreign Office officials.The cuts include slashing the aid programme to Somalia by...

The world’s poorest are becoming poorer as the impact of Covid compounds existing crises, says Disaster Emergency ComitteeCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThousands could starve in the world’s most fragile states as the pandemic comes on top of existing crises, warns a new report today which found aid workers are deeply pessimistic about the coming year.The survey of aid workers by the...

UN agencies say millions at risk if aid can’t reach areas of country stricken by floods, violence and Covid-19Parts of South Sudan are facing a “catastrophic” conflict-fuelled famine, humanitarian groups warned on Friday.Three UN agencies have called for a halt to violence to allow urgent access to parts of Jonglei state, where they said people have already run out of food because of insecurity,...

The country’s FA is launching an ambitious strategy for a sport that has been considered a taboo for girlsSouth Sudan gained independence in 2011 and its history is so short that it is a regular low-scoring answer on the popular quiz show Pointless. Much less trivially, for a majority of its existence the country has been in civil war, with peace and a new...

Twenty years after a landmark UN resolution, leading figures share insight on women’s vital role in mediating conflictIn October 2000, the UN security council adopted resolution 1325 – the first resolution that acknowledged women’s unique experience of conflict and their vital role in peace negotiations and peacebuilding. Twenty years on, we speak to four women helping keep the peace around the world. Continue reading...

Tensions between locals and South Sudanese refugees have left at least 10 dead as authorities act to prevent escalation Uganda has sent security troops to its north-west region where tensions are on the rise following deadly attacks on refugees by local people.More than 10 South Sudanese refugees were killed, including a teenage girl and a 25-year-old woman and her baby, and 19 others were...

Pact covers security, land ownership, power sharing and return of displaced peopleSudan’s government has agreed to a peace deal with five rebel groups in a move seen by observers as a significant step towards resolving multiple deep-rooted civil conflicts that have caused immense suffering in the country for decades.The agreement will provide a welcome boost to the transitional government that took power after the...

Ability to carry out humanitarian work in most dangerous conflict-hit regions threatened by local NGO staff being caught in crossfireThere has been a sharp rise in the number of aid staff killed in the first six months of this year with Syria at the top of the list of the deadliest places to be a humanitarian worker.A total of 74 fatalities have been recorded...

Therapy is helping some of the thousands forced over the border to Uganda to cope, but funding shortfalls mean resources are becoming scarcerAs darkness fell, Rebecca closed the door to her makeshift home. The day was over.The 29-year-old, who had been uprooted from South Sudan to a north Ugandan refugee settlement, sat on the bed where her four children slept and, at around 10pm,...

UN warns 25 million people in east Africa region could be affected as wartorn country is beset by fresh wave of insectsSwarms of desert locusts, which have been ravaging crops and grazing land across east Africa, have now crossed the border into South Sudan, a country already struggling from widespread hunger and years of civil war.The UN has warned that an imminent second hatch...

Invasion is further food shortages in country struggling with drought and legacy of civil war Swarms of locusts ravaging crops and grazing land across east Africa have reached South Sudan, already reeling from widespread hunger and years of civil war, the country’s agriculture minister said on Tuesday.Kenya, Somalia, Eritrea and Djibouti are battling the worst locust outbreak in decades, and swarms have also spread...

From Somalia to South Sudan, torrential rains have devastated crops and made roads impassable, sending the cost of food soaringBefore the floods hit her village, crumpling buildings, ripping out pathways and submerging swathes of land, Nurto Mohamed Hassan could buy a kilogram of rice for the equivalent of about 70p.Now the cost is more than £1. This may not seem a lot in isolation...

Nepalese blue helmets deployed in Lakes state after 79 people die in fighting between Gak and Manuer communities UN peacekeepers have been sent to South Sudan’s northern Lakes region after a series of clashes in which 79 people were killed and more than 100 injured.With roads impassable due to heavy rains and flooding, the Nepalese blue helmets travelled by helicopter on Tuesday from Rumbek,...

Increase in violent conflict combined with effects of climate crisis make outlook bleak for world’s poorest people, says reportAttacks on healthcare workers have reached a record high according to a UN report that predicts a “bleak outlook” for the world’s poorest people due to intense armed conflict and the climate emergency.The number of highly violent conflicts has risen to 41, from 36 in 2018,...

Rescue efforts continue in Pokot region but roads are impassable and bridges closedAt least 29 people were killed in Kenya when their homes were swept away in landslides during overnight rainstorms, the government said.Their homes were hit in the early hours of Saturday amid torrential rain in the Pokot region, 220 miles north-west of the capital Nairobi. Continue reading...

Growing number of young fighters combined with sexual violence and ethnic tensions threatens return to civil war, UN warnsUN investigators have warned that despite the fragile peace in South Sudan, the recruitment of children into the army and militias is on the increase as each side seeks to bolster infantry numbers.The investigators also warned that sexual violence against women and localised ethnic violence are...

Travel firms adopt wait-and-see approach as government seeks to entice visitors with safaris, Nile rafting and climbing tripsWhen Carsten Lillelund Pedersen visited South Sudan in November he was almost turned back at the airport.The immigration official had never seen a tourist visa before. Continue reading...