Two children starved to death
in Aweil East County, Northern Bahr el Ghazal State, at the weekend, an
official has confirmed.
The deceased have been
identified as Aleng Yak Madhieu, 10; and her brother Deng Yak Madhieu, 14.
The incident took place at
Riilagok village in Madhol Payam on Saturday while the children’s parents were
out looking for food.
In March of this year, the
Yaks, their 10 siblings, and their parents returned from Sudan.
“So, they were registered and
given food ration cards by Hope For Africa organization,” said the
payam administrator.
Paulino Kuol said the two
children succumbed to hunger while their parents trekked to a food distribution
center in Malualbaai, 30 kilometers from their village.
Unfortunately, the parents
returned empty-handed due to a biometric system glitch.
“So, they returned home, and
upon arrival, they found two of their children had starved to death—a boy and a
girl,” Kuol continued.
Kuol urged NGOs to stop using
biometric systems and instead use cards to assist vulnerable communities in a
timely manner.
When asked about the alleged
starvation incident that killed children, the RRC coordinator for Aweil East
County declined to comment.
The humanitarian situation in South Sudan has deteriorated, with the UN predicting that 56 percent of the population will face acute food insecurity during the lean season between April and July 2024.
This year, an estimated 1.65
million children are expected to be acutely malnourished and require treatment.
Conflict, insecurity, and climate extremes continue to be the primary causes of food insecurity.
In addition, the Sudanese crisis has put enormous pressure on the South Sudanese economy, and many returning citizens are now trying to integrate into communities that were already struggling, UNHCR said.
According to
the 2024 South Sudan Humanitarian Response Plan, 75 per cent of the total
population of the country requires humanitarian aid.