High acute malnutrition remains a concern with early onset of the lean season

The Sudan Acute IPC Analysis from April to July 2016 projected a two-month early start to the lean season in April 2016, and estimated more than 4.4 million people in Sudan facing Crisis (IPC Phase 3) or worse acute food insecurity, including more than 100,000 people in Emergency (IPC Phase 4), with the largest populations in conflict-affected areas of South Kordofan and Jebel Marra in Darfur. 

Conflict continues to drive displacement in Jebel Marra areas of the Darfur States and in South Kordofan.  In April, about 23,000 people were reported displaced in parts of Central and South Darfur States. Meanwhile, ground fighting In South Kordofan has displaced nearly 34,000 people within SPLM-N-controlled areas since January 2016 and UNHCR registered 1,599 new arrivals from South Kordofan in Yida camp in Unity State of South Sudan in April, totaling 4,635 arrivals since the beginning of 2016.  

Since January 2016, about 69,000 South Sudanese refugees from conflict-affected and food-insecure areas of South Sudan have arrived in Sudan, about 75 percent more than during the same period last year. East Darfur is hosting about 66 percent of 2016 new arrivals, with the rest in West Kordofan, South Darfur, and White Nile states. The start of the rainy season in June/July is likely to block roads and reduce the influx of refugees from South Sudan.

Recently collected nutrition data underline the worrying nutrition situation in Sudan. The Sudan Ministry of Health and UNICEF recently used MUAC to screen for acute malnutrition among children under five years old in 13 states out of 18 states between January and March 2016. Approximately 95,023 of nearly half a million children were identified as acutely malnourished, including 17,848 children with severe acute malnutrition referred for treatment, a 30 percent increase compared to the same period last year. This increase is attributed to increased displacement due to conflict, reduced food access following below-average harvests in 2015 due to El Niño, and the ongoing expansion of MUAC screening and acute malnutrition treatment.