Returnees camped under tree in northern Upper Nile State. | Photo: Michael Daniel.

The United States government has approved $22 million for humanitarian agencies to respond to the needs of civilians displaced into South Sudan by the war in neighboring Sudan.

The finance is part of an initial $103 million dollars that Washington approved as additional humanitarian assistance to support Sudan and neighboring countries experiencing the impacts of the crisis.

The funding will be channeled through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

It will be divided into $8 million for the Central African Republic, $17 million for Chad, $6 million for Egypt, $22 million for South Sudan, and $50 million for Sudan, to help meet increased humanitarian needs resulting from the ongoing crisis.

USAID Administrator Samantha Power announced the funding during her trip to Chad, where she is meeting with Sudanese refugees who have been forced to flee their homes due to recent fighting.

Since the outbreak of fighting in Sudan on April 15, more than 76,000 people have crossed the border from Sudan into Chad, according to reports by UN agencies.

Before the outbreak of fighting in Khartoum, Chad already hosted more than 600,000 refugees – making it the country with the largest Sudanese population.

Meanwhile, South Sudan, already plagued by years of civil war, is burdened with a turbulent humanitarian situation at its 2000-kilometer border with Sudan.

According to government data, 70,000 returnees and refugees who fled the conflict in Sudan, were registered at border points from April 17th-May 16th.

Several countries have since provided monetary and material assistance to humanitarian agencies in South Sudan to respond to the needs of refugees and returnees fleeing the violence in Sudan.

Japan announced an emergency grant of $3.5 million, France approved $2.1 million and China responded with rice donation for the displaced population.