Vegetables on sale at Konyo-Konyo market - credit | Moyo Jacob/Eye Radio | April 19, 2022

South Sudan pound depreciated by 48.93 per cent against the US dollar in March 2023 in comparison with the same period last year as commodity prices skyrocketed, according to UN agencies.

The UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said underfunded relief organizations have minimized their response to reaching people with the greatest needs.

World Food Program (WFP) data revealed similar worsening economic situation in the same period, as the prices of maize flour and beans increased by 55 percent and 84 percent respectively.

“Price increases are pushing basic necessities out of reach for many people,” OCHA said in its monthly humanitarian snapshot published on April 19, 2024.

“Affordability of essential food items is worsening food insecurity and raising malnutrition concerns, particularly among vulnerable populations.”

OCHA further said it detected a Global Acute Malnutrition rate of 22 percent in its screening for malnutrition among returnees and refugees children in Wau County of Western Bahr el Ghazal State.

As of April 2024, 640,688 people have arrived in South Sudan from Sudan since conflict erupted there in April last year, approximately 78% of whom are South Sudanese returnees.

An estimated 9 million people including refugees will experience critical needs in 2024, including an estimated 7.1 million who will require food assistance from April to July 2024, according to agencies.

President Salva Kiir pledged his government’s commitment to tackling the economic hardships facing South Sudan as he reopened the transitional national parliament on April 3, 2024.

Addressing lawmakers, Kiir outlined plans to enhance the agricultural sector, in a bid to tackle overreliance on oil revenue amidst interruptions caused by the Sudan conflict.