The government and UN agencies say almost 5 million people will face severe food shortages soon due to insecurity and economic crisis in the country.

In a joint statement, the Ministry of Agriculture, WFP and FAO say the overall food and nutrition security situation has deteriorated in many parts of the country.

“We are now seeing sharp spikes of need in new areas, such as Eastern Equatoria or Western Bahr el-Ghazal, where malnutrition rates in some places are reaching dangerous levels,” said WFP Country Director Joyce Luma.

“We have started ramping up food and nutrition support, but much more is needed to keep things from deteriorating even further during the lean season.”

However, the partners say the worst affected population is the displaced, returning households and low income earners.

The Minister of Agriculture and food security, Dr Lam Akol, says approximately 300,000 people who are urban poor and food insecure are located in Juba, Wau and Aweil towns.

“The government acknowledges the concerns of the IPC projection for May-July this year and urges all actors to scale up their efforts in the months of the lean season in order to prevent further deterioration of food insecurity and malnutrition,” Dr Akol told the media in Juba on Wednesday.