WFP Warns of Food Aid Cuts as Funding Crisis Imperils Millions of Sudanese Refugees
Without immediate financial support, ration cuts are imminent, further jeopardizing already fragile communities.
Sudan, Tawila, North Darfur, Friday 22 June 2025 People continue to flee escalating violence in El Fasher, many arriving in Tawila with little or not. Photo/WFP.
By Juliet Jerotich
A growing shortfall in international humanitarian funding now threatens the survival of millions of Sudanese refugees who have fled conflict and sought safety in neighboring nations, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announced on Monday.
In a stark warning, the WFP said it may be forced to implement severe reductions in life-saving food assistance, potentially halting aid altogether in countries such as the Central African Republic, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Libya in the coming months due to dwindling financial resources.
The humanitarian crisis stems from the ongoing civil conflict in Sudan, which has displaced millions since it began more than two years ago, pitting the national army against paramilitary forces. The WFP emphasized that the conditions for many displaced Sudanese are already dire.
“In Uganda, some of the most vulnerable refugees are surviving on fewer than 500 calories per day—a fraction of the nutritional intake needed to sustain health,” the agency reported, citing the strain new arrivals are placing on already stretched refugee support systems.
Chad, which shelters nearly 25% of the four million Sudanese refugees, is also facing significant food shortages. Without immediate financial support, ration cuts are imminent, further jeopardizing already fragile communities.
Children are especially at risk. Malnutrition rates among young refugees in Uganda and South Sudan have exceeded emergency thresholds. Alarmingly, many arrive at refugee camps already suffering from severe malnutrition, even before receiving any aid.
“This is a full-scale regional emergency unfolding in some of the most food-insecure and conflict-affected areas in the world,” said Shaun Hughes, WFP’s Emergency Coordinator for the Sudan Regional Crisis.
Hughes warned that millions who depend entirely on WFP assistance are at risk:
“Without urgent funding, we will be forced to deepen cuts in food aid. The consequences will be devastating—especially for children and vulnerable families who face increasing threats of hunger and malnutrition.”
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