Hua Ning, Ambassador of China to South Sudan. |Credit//Chinese Embassy in South Sudan

Families whose livelihoods have been uprooted by recent floods in South Sudan are expected to benefit from new funds pledged by the government of China, the country’s embassy has said.

The $300,000 disaster relief funds, in addition to the emergency food aid will aid people affected by flash floods across the country.

According to the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, some 800,000 people were affected by floods by the end of September, with half of the country flooded.

It stated that approximately 368,000 people were displaced.

Humanitarian agencies say the most affected states include greater Jonglei, Unity Eastern, and Western Equatoria.

“We are very concern about the flood situation,” said Hua Ning, Chinese ambassador to South Sudan, “…and we hope the help will increase very soon.”

Ambassador Hua Ning spoke follwing a meeting with South Sudan’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Beatrice Khamisa Wani, Monday.

In September, China handed over 3,000 tons of food aid, of which 1,500 tons was used for disaster relief. It also donated 1,500 tons of rice for the training of the unified force.

The Chinese government says it has provided a total of 9,660 tons of rice (worth about $15 million) to South Sudan since the signing of the revitalized peace deal in 2018.

“We have also donated $12 million to the World Food Programme (WFP) to provide food for the South Sudanese people and students,” a statement on the embassy’s website noted.