Aid partners will today launch a humanitarian response plan to assist more than five million severely food insecure people in the country this year.

In a statement, the United Nations for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says the project will be implemented by 137 Non-governmental organizations and UN agencies.

The 2017 lifesaving plan is projected to cost $1.6 billion, which the humanitarians say they are yet lacking.

Since December 2013, the conflict has reportedly devastated the lives of millions of South Sudanese and more than 3 million people have been forced to flee their homes.

Some of them have sought refuge in the neighboring countries, mostly Uganda, Kenya, and Ethiopia. Others are under the protection of UN across the country.

There are humanitarian needs across South Sudan as a result of multiple and interlocking threats, including armed conflict and inter-communal violence, economic decline, disease, and climatic shocks, according to the UNOCHA.

On Monday, UN agencies – FAO, WFP, and UNICEF – declared famine in the country, particularly in the former Unity State, where 100,000 people are facing starvation there.