More than 936,000 people have been newly displaced in Sudan by the ongoing conflict since April, the United Nations estimates.
Exactly a month since the conflict begun on 15 April, a ceasefire agreement between the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Support Forces has failed to be implemented and now food insecurity is on the rise.
Food supplies threatened
“The ongoing conflict threatens the planting season, which is set to begin at the end of May. If the season is missed, the number of people going hungry will increase,” says an assessment report by The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Mercy Corps, an international humanitarian agency conducted a market assessment in nine locations across Sudan in May 2023.
“Prices for staple goods like rice, beans, and bread have dramatically increased - putting them out of the reach of many people,” its report says.
“The supply line of important commodities such as wheat flour and oil into Sudan has broken down due to disruptions in the banking system and transport networks as well as factory closures.”
There have also been disruptions to access to communications line and electricity.
Fighting continues
On May 11, 2023, the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Support Forces signed a “declaration of commitment” to honour humanitarian ceasefire, but the fighting has continued.
“Immediately they came out they started fighting again, so you can clearly see that there is going to be a continued pile up of humanitarian crisis , port Sudan is already facing a crisis because of all the people who are trying to flee,” Dr. Edgar Githua, an international relations expert told TRT Afrika.
“We need an external very powerful intervener or else they will continue fighting until they reach a place that we call in international relations , a mutually hurting stalemate , this means both of are hurting so much they are looking for a way out,” Dr. Githua said.
Over 700 people have been killed and over 5,000 injured, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
The African Union says it supports a jointly led AU-UN mechanism that will coordinate international action to end the violence and the destabilization of Sudan.
