The United States, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), is providing $106 million in additional humanitarian assistance through the UN World Food Program (WFP) for the people of South Sudan, who continue to experience the devastating effects of violence, food insecurity, the COVID-19 pandemic, and successive years of widespread flooding–all of which are compounded by impacts resulting from Russia’s unprovoked war against Ukraine. 

With these funds, the U.S. government is supporting WFP to provide food and nutrition assistance to nearly 914,000 crisis-affected people, including refugees and individuals facing food insecurity and malnutrition, across South Sudan. In addition, these funds will support logistics efforts by WFP to move vital relief commodities to help people most in need around the country. This new assistance follows USAID’s July 7 announcement of $117 million in assistance for South Sudan made available by the drawdown of the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust, which is also providing vital food and nutrition assistance through WFP.  

Between seven and eight million people in South Sudan are estimated to be facing acute food insecurity during the current June to September lean season, primarily due to conflict and insecurity, poor economic conditions, and recurrent flooding. Nearly nine million people, more than 70 percent of the country’s population, are in need of humanitarian assistance.

The United States laments the South Sudanese government’s failure to implement the peace agreement and unwillingness to address the diversion of oil revenue before it reaches the national budget, depriving the people of South Sudan of resources needed to meet their humanitarian needs. This additional aid will help meet the most immediate needs, but the government of South Sudan must show a greater commitment to address the needs of its people.

The additional support brings total U.S. humanitarian assistance to South Sudan to more than $691 million since October 2021, including more than $635 million from USAID. Today’s funding for South Sudan is included in the additional Ukraine supplemental and is part of the $2.76 billion in USAID assistance announced by President Joe Biden on June 27, 2022. It is immediately being programmed in FY 2022 to address the most dire impacts of the global food security crisis through direct food assistance and related health, nutrition, protection, and water, sanitation, and hygiene services in countries with high levels of acute food insecurity, reliance on Russian and Ukrainian imports, and vulnerability to price shocks.