By Alan Clement
More than 3,000 Sudanese refugees and South Sudanese returnees, including unaccompanied children, have entered South Sudan fleeing renewed fighting in Sudan, straining border reception points and exposing critical humanitarian service gaps, UNICEF warned.
According to a UNICEF South Sudan statement, the arrivals, concentrated at entry points such as Rotriak and Panakuach, come as South Sudan grapples with overlapping crises of conflict, hunger, disease and economic fragility.
The UN humanitarian agency stated that the sudden influx has overwhelmed already limited local capacity, leaving vulnerable families especially children and mothers at heightened risk of malnutrition, illness and psychosocial distress.
UNICEF said many of the children arriving have experienced violence, family separation and prolonged displacement, with some crossing the border alone.
“We are seeing increasing numbers of unaccompanied and separated minors who require urgent protection and care,” UNICEF stated in a statement, noting that the agency and its partners have begun emergency nutrition screenings, family tracing and interim care arrangements.
The statement further revealed that plans are also underway to establish safe, child-friendly spaces to provide structured psychosocial support and protection services.
The new displacement is unfolding against the backdrop of one of South Sudan’s worst hunger emergencies in years. According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, more than 7.7 million people; over half the population are projected to face acute food insecurity during the current lean season.
Children are among the hardest hit, with an estimated 2.1 million under the age of five expected to suffer from moderate or severe acute malnutrition if assistance is not sustained.
Health risks are compounding the crisis as well as South Sudan continues to battle recurring disease outbreaks, including cholera and measles, driven by limited access to clean water, poor sanitation and overstretched health facilities.
For newly arrived children weakened by hunger and exhaustion, the threat of disease is particularly acute especially as the agency reported that water and sanitation facilities at several transit points are inadequate, raising fears of rapid disease transmission in crowded conditions.
The displacement into South Sudan is part of a wider regional emergency triggered by the protracted conflict in Sudan, which erupted in April 2023 and has since become one of the world’s largest displacement crises.
Millions of Sudanese have been forced from their homes, with neighbouring countries absorbing growing numbers of refugees. South Sudan, itself heavily aid-dependent after years of conflict and flooding, has received hundreds of thousands of people fleeing the war, many of them returning nationals with few resources to rebuild their lives.
Humanitarian agencies said funding shortfalls are sharply limiting the response and essential services including health care, water and sanitation, food assistance, child protection in emergencies and gender-based violence support remain critically under-resourced.
Shelter capacity at reception and transit sites is also insufficient, leaving families exposed to harsh weather and insecurity.
“We are working closely with national and local authorities, UN agencies and NGOs to identify the most vulnerable and prioritise assistance,” UNICEF noted adding, “But without an urgent expansion of multi-sectoral support, the situation for displaced children and families will deteriorate further.”
The UN agency is calling on donors to urgently increase funding to prevent a deepening humanitarian emergency.
It warns that without swift action, the combination of displacement, hunger and disease risks could have long-term consequences for a generation of children already growing up amid crisis, not only in South Sudan but across the wider region affected by the Sudan conflict.