Funding cuts are threatening food assistance for South Sudanese refugees in Ethiopia. A severe shortfall in funding is forcing the World Food Programme (WFP) to drastically reduce food and other aid for hundreds of thousands of refugees, most of whom come from South Sudan. The cuts affect predictable, longer‑term food assistance, putting tens of thousands of people at risk of losing access to essential nutrition.
Nyibol, a South Sudanese refugee, fled with her four children to Ethiopia in April to escape unrest at home. After a two‑week journey, they found shelter in the western Gambella Region, but now face new hardships. “My children are small; the journey was difficult for them,” Nyibol recalls. The WFP was the first humanitarian agency to respond to the influx of South Sudanese asylum seekers, distributing nutritious, ready‑to‑eat, high‑energy biscuits to people who had walked days without food. However, the funding cuts are now undermining the organization’s ability to provide this vital assistance.
“Without immediate funding for the acute food needs, tens of thousands of people arriving from South Sudan risk losing the support that keeps them alive,” said Zlatan Milisic, WFP Ethiopia Representative and Country Director. The reductions also jeopardize WFP programmes that promote livelihood opportunities and resilience for both refugee and host communities. The organization is calling for urgent resources to cover critical food needs and prevent an already fragile situation from sliding into a deeper crisis.
Since February, about 70,000 South Sudanese have arrived in Gambella, bringing the total refugee population in the region to roughly 440,000 across seven settlements. Most have fled South Sudan’s Upper Nile State, where renewed violence continues to claim lives and destroy livelihoods. The funding cuts have forced WFP to sharply reduce rations for longstanding refugees, with many now receiving only 1,000 calories a day—about 40 % of the minimum recommended intake.
These cuts are part of broader global aid reductions that are deepening hunger and malnutrition. A WFP report warns that the decline in assistance could push 13.7 million more people into emergency food insecurity. In Ethiopia, shrinking rations are driving up malnutrition rates in refugee camps, leading many refugees to skip meals, sell precious possessions, or take exploitative jobs.
The Ethiopian government and humanitarian partners are coordinating efforts to establish new camps and register new arrivals. However, without a massive and rapid influx of contributions, support for all refugees in Ethiopia could run out by the end of December, leaving many with few options. The WFP is urgently seeking funding to sustain its refugee operations in Ethiopia, which currently rely on contributions from several countries and private donors.
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