Sudanese refugees in Northern Bahr El Ghazal - April 30, 2023 - Courtesy

The Executive Director of World Food Program warned that the war in Sudan has shattered millions of lives and risks triggering the world’s biggest hunger crisis if the military factions do not end it.

Cindy McCain made the remarks in a statement published on Wednesday as she concluded a visit to Renk Transit Center in South Sudan, where she met with displaced civilians.

Ms. McCain said the people of Sudan have been forgotten, and millions of lives and regional peace are at stake.

“The war in Sudan risks triggering the world’s largest hunger crisis. Today, the people of Sudan have been forgotten. Millions of lives and the peace and stability of an entire region are at stake,” she said.

WFP said over 25 million people across Sudan, South Sudan, and Chad are trapped in a spiral of deteriorating food security.

The agency further said it is unable to get sufficient food assistance to desperate communities in Sudan who are trapped by fighting due to relentless violence and interference by the warring parties.

“Right now, 90 per cent of people facing emergency levels of hunger in Sudan are stuck in areas that are largely inaccessible to WFP,” it said.

WFP said humanitarian assistance has been further disrupted after authorities revoked permissions for cross-border truck convoys, forcing WFP to halt its operations from Chad into Darfur.

The agency said an increasing number of people continue to flee into South Sudan and Chad while the humanitarian response is at breaking point.

Executive Director McCain reportedly travelled to Renk and visited the crowded transit camps where “families arrive hungry and are met with more hunger.”

“I met mothers and children who have fled for their lives not once, but multiple times, and now hunger is closing in on them,” she said.

“The consequences of inaction go far beyond a mother unable to feed her child and will shape the region for years to come. Today I am making an urgent plea for the fighting to stop, and that all humanitarian agencies must be allowed to do their life-saving work.”

WFP calls for urgent unimpeded access in Sudan to address the escalating food insecurity, which will have significant long-term impacts on the region.

It also appeals for donor support to respond to the spread of the humanitarian crisis to neighboring countries.

WFP further emphasized that a cessation of hostilities and lasting peace is the only way to reverse course and prevent catastrophe.