Archive · 14 Aug 2026
650,000 South Sudan refugees could lose food aid within weeks
Many people who fled the war in Sudan now live in South Sudan, and they are called refugees.
Every week, about 3,000 more people arrive from Sudan.
Agencies like the United Nations have been giving refugees food, but they are running out of money.
That means more than 650,000 refugees may stop receiving food aid very soon.
The food they get now is already only half of what they need.
Some families are eating fewer meals, selling their belongings, and taking children out of school to survive.
Women and children also face higher risks of being hurt or mistreated.
A few refugees have asked to go back to Sudan, but the UN says it is not safe for them to return.
If new money does not arrive, no refugees will get food from the UN starting in October.
Aid agencies are urgently asking for more funding to prevent this crisis.
More than 650,000 refugees and asylum seekers in South Sudan risk losing food aid access within weeks due to a severe funding shortfall, UN agencies warned.
The last food distributions for the most vulnerable 240,000 refugees will be made in September unless new funding is secured.
Without new funding, no refugees in South Sudan will receive food assistance from October, UNHCR said.
South Sudan faces one of the world's worst hunger crises, with more than 7.8 million people experiencing acute food insecurity and 2.2 million children acutely malnourished.
The World Food Programme must bridge a $37 million funding gap for refugee operations between October and December, while UNHCR has received only 28% of the $286 million it requires this year.
- Who
- More than 650,000 refugees and asylum seekers in South Sudan, aided by the United Nations World Food Programme and UNHCR
- What
- Refugees risk losing food aid access within weeks because of a severe UN funding shortfall
- When
- UN warning issued on Friday, Aug 14; last distributions would be made in September, and food assistance ends from October if no new funding arrives
- Where
- South Sudan; the warning was announced from Geneva and Juba
- Why
- A severe funding shortfall: the World Food Programme faces a $37 million funding gap for refugee operations, and UNHCR has received only 28% of the $286 million it requires this year
Refugees seeking help at home
UNHCR's safety assessment
Whether refugees should return to Sudan
Refugees seeking help at home
Some refugees have already asked UNHCR to help facilitate their return, and the funding cut may force others back to war-torn Sudan in search of help.
UNHCR's safety assessment
UNHCR does not consider conditions in Sudan safe for return, even as some refugees seek to go back.
- Refugees at risk of losing food aid
- More than 650,000
- Most vulnerable refugees receiving last September distributions
- 240,000
- WFP funding gap for refugee operations (October-December)
- $37 million
- UNHCR funding received this year
- 28% of the $286 million required
- People in acute food insecurity in South Sudan
- More than 7.8 million (over half the population)
- Acutely malnourished children
- 2.2 million
- New refugees and returnees arriving weekly from Sudan
- About 3,000
- Planned assistance cuts from October/November
- 180,000 internally displaced people from October; 600,000 in famine-risk areas by November