More than half of children assessed in Sudan’s isolated Jebel Marra region are chronically malnourished as a severe El Niño-induced drought compounds the ongoing devastation of civil war, leaving 19.5 million people facing acute food insecurity and international leaders demanding immediate aid access.
In North Kordofan state, smallholder Mariam Omar surveyed her failing fields near the town of Um Ruwaba and stated This year is terrible.
Across the hardest-hit agricultural belts of Darfur and Kordofan, farmers who managed to plant crops now watch them shrivel in dry, sandy soil. The convergence of a three-year civil war and plunging rainfall has pushed Sudan toward a deepening hunger catastrophe, according to alerts from the United Nations-backed global hunger monitor, the IPC.
Save the Children Data Reveals Stunting in Jebel Marra
New survey figures published by Save the Children from Central Jebel Marra show that 57% of assessed children suffer from chronic malnutrition, known as stunting, while 15% face acute wasting. The region is struggling under the weight of active conflict, ruined livelihoods, and an underfunded humanitarian response.
Sudan’s worsening hunger crisis demands urgent action. All actors must remove impediments to humanitarian aid and enable safe, unimpeded access across Sudan.Alongside 31 international partners, the UK is clear: there is no time to lose to avert famine.https://t.co/MZItPGK9Mu
In Gedaref, seven-month-old Hamza lost his mother shortly after birth and was placed in the care of his grandmother, Khadija, at a local stabilization center.
When we arrived at the stabilisation centre, the doctors and nurses immediately began treating him, Today, he smiles, plays and looks like a different child.
Khadija, grandmother of a malnourished infant in Gedaref
Save the Children recently initiated a $300 million global humanitarian nutrition program spanning 2026 to 2028 to tackle child malnutrition in severe conflict zones, including Sudan.
Famine in #Sudan is not only result of food shortages, but primarily war and the obstruction of humanitarian aid.#Slovenia advocates for safe and unimpeded humanitarian access and protection of civilians. Millions of people need aid to survive.Parties to the conflict must…
El Niño Drought and Low Rainfall Strangle Harvests
Rainfall between July and September fell to its lowest levels in more than three decades, according to data from the United States Geological Survey. Mohamed Abdelrahman, a farmer managing roughly 420 hectares in the Um Rawaba area, noted that displaced farmers returning to their lands are finding only drought-stricken earth.
Usually at this time the cattle are fat and everyone is making a profit. But now, with this autumn’s scarcity, the cattle became skinny,
local agricultural workers reported. Large-scale producers anticipate their total harvest will shrink to just a quarter of last year’s output.
As of October 17, the WFP had $276 million to fund its Sudan operation, less than half of last year’s budget. The UN World Food Programme projects that an additional 350,000 people will experience severe hunger by the end of 2026, with that figure climbing to 1.2 million more by August 2027.
International Warning Issued by the UK and 31 Partners
In response to the deteriorating conditions, the United Kingdom alongside 31 international partners issued a joint ministerial warning on October 23, 2026. The signatories — including the United States, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland — urged the warring factions to lift all bureaucratic and physical restrictions on relief deliveries, protect aid personnel, and permit open crossline and cross-border routes, including air access directly into Darfur.
📍 In #Sudan, El Niño is making rainfall increasingly unpredictable.WFP is helping farmers access the information they need to plan ahead, protect their crops and prepare for the season. pic.twitter.com/tgU6eUzjLg
The war, which erupted in April 2023 following disputes over political transitions and military integration plans, has displaced more than 14 million people and killed tens of thousands. The State Department reiterated that the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces bear primary responsibility
for easing civilian suffering.
The international community cannot look away. We urgently need a large-scale integrated response and sustained access to provide food security, life-saving nutrition, healthcare and clean water while strengthening the systems children depend on.
Save the Children, humanitarian briefing
The General Coordination for Displaced Persons and Refugees called for an immediate 90-day humanitarian truce to stem civilian suffering, while the Emergency Lawyers group demanded the establishment of dedicated relief centers in vulnerable areas.
In Sudan, a war for raw power, fueled by outside actors, has become a war on civilians.The fighting must stop.Civilians must be protected.Humanitarian aid must flow, without obstruction.The country’s unity, sovereignty & territorial integrity must be preserved.And…
Over 1,800 people, mostly children and mothers, have died from acute malnutrition in Sudan's Jebel Marra and surrounding areas, local civil authorities say.Severe shortages of food and life-saving medicines continue to hit war-affected regions across Darfur.… pic.twitter.com/qYnjoeoScm