U.N. says 50,000 children face death in South Sudan as launches aid plan
Sun Jun 15, 2014 2:57pm GMT
By Carl Odera
JUBA, June 15 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of children in South Sudan could
die this year without assistance from aid agencies, the United Nations said
on Saturday, as it appealed for more than $1 billion to help those hit by
six months of civil war.
Fighting that erupted in December has driven 1.5 million people from their
homes, and seven million were at risk of starvation and disease, said Toby
Lanzer, U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator in South Sudan.
"Unless fighting ends and people can return to their homes and resume their
livelihoods, the situation will continue to worsen," he said at the launch
of a plan to support 3.8 million people.
"The consequences could be dire: 50,000 children could die this year if they
do not get assistance."
Government forces backing President Salva Kiir and soldiers loyal to his
sacked deputy Riek Machar violated the latest ceasefire signed in May hours
after it took effect, with the continued bloodshed compounding the
humanitarian crisis in the world's youngest nation.
Lanzer said the seasonal rains had set in and conditions for South Sudanese
were deteriorating by the day.
"Cholera has broken out and malaria is rampant and many children are
malnourished. Millions of people need emergency healthcare, food, clean
water, proper sanitation and shelter to make it through the year," he said.
Lanzer said aid groups were so far attending to 1.9 million people and had
raised $740 million out of a total $1.8 billion needed by December to
address the humanitarian crisis.
"This leaves a gap of just over $1 billion - or only $1.50 per day for each
person to be assisted. With sufficient resources, we will be able to do much
more," he said.
A U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs response plan for
South Sudan released on Saturday said that by December up to 1.5 million
people would have been displaced within South Sudan and more than 835,000
would have sought refuge in neighbouring countries.
Even if a new ceasefire took effect, fighting and displacement had already
"shattered the lives of millions of people," Lanzer told reporters in the
capital Juba.
Warring parties have been accused of blocking or interfering in relief
operations in South Sudan, forcing aid agencies to resort to more expensive
airdrops of supplies.
"We need to the water ways to be opened, it costs us 10 times less to
deliver relief to some locations by (river) barge than it does to fly
supplies into those locations," Lanzer said.
Earlier this week, East African states threatened to slap South Sudan's
warring sides with sanctions unless they cease all military operations in
the conflict which has sparked fears that it could spiral into genocide.
(Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Rosalind Russell)