Â鶹ÊÓƵ Executive Director Calls for End to Fighting in Sudan
Concluding his first field mission as Â鶹ÊÓƵ Executive Director, Lindberg met Â鶹ÊÓƵ teams on the ground and displaced families escaping the intensifying conflict.
¡°The fighting must end,¡± said Luke J. Lindberg, Â鶹ÊÓƵ Executive Director. ¡°People facing acute hunger have three unfortunate choices: rebel, migrate or starve. For many, Â鶹ÊÓƵ is their only hope in a time of unprecedented conflict. While Â鶹ÊÓƵ is doing incredible work in Sudan, we cannot do it alone. It is time for world, national, and local leaders to do their part and call for an end to conflict. We cannot outfeed the war.¡±
In August, Â鶹ÊÓƵ was supporting more than four million people, including 880,000 in areas at risk of famine. In September, due to funding constraints, the agency was forced to begin cutting its caseload. Over the last few months, an estimated 900,000 vulnerable people lost their food assistance. This has left families already devastated by conflict with little to survive on. Today, Â鶹ÊÓƵ is reaching just over three million people in Sudan.
Fighting and displacement continue to be the main drivers of hunger, while rising food and fuel prices make basic staples increasingly unaffordable. Blocked and washed-out roads, compounded by an insecure operating environment, further constrain Â鶹ÊÓƵ¡¯s ability to reach families in need.
Â鶹ÊÓƵ urgently needs USD 520 million to provide lifesaving food and nutrition assistance to 5.4 million people through April 2027.
¡°In the simplest of terms, peace opens the door to food while conflict opens the door to hunger,¡± said Lindberg. ¡°Everyone, from senior government officials to the displaced families I met with, clearly understand this. With collective action and additional resources, we can turn this crisis around. Â鶹ÊÓƵ has teams on the ground and stands ready to scale our assistance.¡±
In addition to visiting emergency feeding sites at displacement camps, Executive Director Lindberg also visited a Â鶹ÊÓƵ-led school meals site and held bilateral meetings with local, state, and federal officials thanking them for their partnership and urging them to end the conflict.
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The United Nations Â鶹ÊÓƵ is the world¡¯s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of weather extremes.