The Obama Administration has announced over $133 million in additional humanitarian assistance in response to renewed fighting and deteriorating humanitarian conditions in South Sudan over the last two months.
The announcement was made today in Geneva by a U.S. delegation led by U.S. Special Envoy for Sudan and South Sudan Donald E. Booth.
“The delegation also emphasized the urgent need for the parties to the conflict to negotiate a peaceful solution. Including this additional contribution, the U.S. government has contributed more than $1.2 billion in humanitarian assistance since the outbreak of the conflict in December 2013,” read a statement from the US Department of State.
“This new funding will allow U.S.-funded organizations to provide food and livelihood support and prevent the spread of diseases by providing emergency health services, safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, and hygiene education.”
The money is also meant to ‘help survivors of gender-based violence, malnourished children, and persons with disabilities among affected populations in South Sudan, and neighboring countries’.
The United States called upon warring parties to immediately bring an end to the violence.
Since South Sudan’s independence in 2011, the USAID has invested an additional $700 million in long-term assistance helping the South Sudanese people in areas such as education, health, democracy and governance, agriculture and conflict mitigation.
The humanitarian crisis has deteriorated since violence broke out at the end of 2013, according to UNOCHA.
More than 2 million people have been internally displaced and are vulnerable to attack, gender-based violence and forced recruitment to armed groups.
An estimated 4.6 million people are facing severe food insecurity and the start of the rainy season is increasing people’s risk of water-borne diseases and malaria.