Sudan

Massive displacement and cross-border fighting are spilling over neighbouring countries, worsening the already catastrophic crisis.

Between 7,000 to as many as 21,000 people are likely dying each day from hunger in countries impacted by conflict, according to a new Oxfam report published on World Food Day.

Reacting to the report, Oxfam Global Food and Economic Security Lead, Emily Farr, said: “This evidence presents an unflinching picture of a world veering off course. Hunger is no longer just a tragic byproduct of conflict—it is increasingly being wielded as its very weapon.

Two members of Oxfam staff were killed in an armed robbery yesterday in the town of Motot in Jonglei State, South Sudan. 

“Oxfam is deeply alarmed by the @theIPCinfo classification of famine in five areas of #Sudan. This is one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises that remains tragically overlooked. The international community and conflict parties must act now to end the suffering and prevent further loss of life.”

The influx of over half a million people fleeing Sudan’s conflict meant that transit centers in Renk – a border town in neighboring South Sudan- are swelling with people three times their capacity, with more than 300 people sharing one water tap. The lack of clean water and sanitation is increasing the risk of cholera, warned Oxfam today.  

The world spent yearly an estimated $112 billion on arms imports between 2018-2022, even as 9,000 people die each day from hunger driven primarily by conflict. The top five-arms exporters – the USA, Russia, France, China and Germany - which account for over three-quarters of the global arms trade, together sold an estimated $85 billion worth of arms yearly.  

Thousands of South Sudanese communities are opening their own doors and offering their meagre resources to refugees fleeing the conflict in neighbouring Sudan. Oxfam is calling for donor countries to step up to avoid a disaster.

Oxfam is supporting a humanitarian response for refugees arriving from Sudan into South Sudan’s Renk and Raban counties in Upper Nile State, and in Chad’s Sila province. 

For every new billionaire created during the pandemic — one every 30 hours — nearly a million people could be pushed into extreme poverty in 2022 at nearly the same rate, reveals a new Oxfam brief today. “Profiting from Pain” is published as the World Economic Forum — the exclusive get-together of the global elite in Davos — takes place for the first time face-to-face since COVID-19, a period during which billionaires have enjoyed a huge boost to their fortunes.