The United Nations World Food
Programme (WFP) said Friday that it has managed to bring
desperately needed food and nutrition supplies into Darfur, the
first WFP assistance to reach the war-wracked region in months.
But the Rome-based UN food agency also warned that, that unless
the people of Sudan receive a constant flow of aid via all
possible humanitarian corridors - from neighbouring countries
and across battle lines - the country's hunger catastrophe will
only worsen.
Two convoys crossed the border from Chad into Darfur in late
March, carrying food and nutrition assistance for around 250,000
people facing acute hunger in North, West and Central Darfur.
These were the first cross-border convoys of WFP assistance to
reach Darfur following lengthy negotiations to reopen these
routes after the authorities in Port Sudan revoked permissions
for humanitarian corridors from Chad in February.
The temporary halt of the humanitarian corridor from Chad as
well as ongoing fighting, lengthy clearance processes for
humanitarian cargo, bureaucratic impediments, and security
threats have made it impossible for humanitarians to operate at
the scale needed to meet the hunger needs in Sudan, it said.
"We need aid to be consistently reaching war-ravaged communities
through every possible route," said WFP Representative and
Country Director in Sudan, Eddie Rowe.
"Hunger in Sudan will only increase as the lean season starts in
just a few weeks. I fear that we will see unprecedented levels
of starvation and malnutrition sweep across Sudan this lean
season".
The WFP said that last week 37 trucks carrying 1,300 metric tons
of supplies crossed into West Darfur from Adre in Chad and food
distributions are underway in West and Central Darfur.
But WFP said it has no clarity as to when the next aid convoy
can travel via this route, which is vital if the humanitarian
community stands a chance of preventing widespread starvation in
West Darfur.
Last year, WFP supported one million people in West and Central
Darfur with food transported via Chad's Adre crossing.
Another 16 trucks with around 580 metric tons of supplies
entered North Darfur from Chad's Tina border crossing on March
23, while six trucks with 260 metric tons of food reached the
area from Port Sudan a few days later - the first aid delivery
to be transported across conflict lines in six months. Yet,
fierce fighting, lack of security, and lengthy clearances by the
warring parties, have led to delays in the distribution of this
assistance to people in need.
"WFP and our partners urgently need security guarantees so
supplies in North Darfur can be distributed to people who are
struggling to find even one basic meal a day," said Rowe.
"Cross-border operations from Chad to Darfur are critical to
reach communities where children are already dying of
malnutrition.
"All corridors to transport food must remain open, particularly
the one from Adre in Chad to West Darfur where levels of hunger
are alarming".
Sudan's war is driving hunger to record levels, with 18 million
people across the country facing acute hunger.
In Darfur, 1.7 million people are in emergency levels of hunger.
Last month, WFP's Executive Director Cindy McCain warned that
the war in Sudan risks triggering the world's worst hunger
crisis unless families in Sudan and those who have fled to South
Sudan and Chad receive desperately needed food assistance.
This requires unfettered access, faster clearance processes, and
funds to deliver a humanitarian response that meets the huge
needs of civilians impacted by Sudan's devastating war, the UN
agency said.
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