More than 650,000 refugees and asylum seekers in South Sudan could lose access to food assistance within weeks unless urgent funding is secured, according to the World Food Programme (WFP) and the UN refugee agency.

Reuters reports that the agencies warned on Friday that the last food distributions for the most vulnerable 240,000 refugees are expected in September, unless additional funding is secured.

“This is not a future scenario. It is sadly a reality that will hold within weeks,” WFP Deputy Country Director in South Sudan Adham Effendi told reporters from Juba, according to Reuters.

The warning comes as South Sudan faces a severe hunger crisis, with more than 7.8 million people experiencing acute food insecurity and about 2.2 million children acutely malnourished, the UN agencies said.

South Sudan is also receiving about 3,000 refugees and returnees from neighbouring Sudan every week as the war there continues.

UNHCR Deputy Representative Mesfin Degefu said that if funding is not secured, no refugees in South Sudan will receive food assistance from October.

According to Reuters, families are already reducing meals, selling belongings, withdrawing children from school and taking on debt to survive. Some refugees have also asked for help returning to Sudan, although UNHCR does not consider conditions there safe for return.

The WFP needs 37 million US dollars to maintain refugee operations between October and December, while UNHCR says it has received only 28 percent of the 286 million dollars it requires for its operations this year.

The funding crisis could also affect assistance to internally displaced people and communities facing famine risks.