Nile Relief Boats Offer Hope, But Hunger Still Worsens

(BOR) – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has resumed the use of river convoys to deliver food and essential supplies along the White Nile River, months after fighting in Upper Nile State rendered these vital corridors inaccessible.

The return of river access comes at a time of growing concern over a severe funding shortfall that threatens to disrupt life-saving humanitarian operations across South Sudan. Nearly half of the country’s population, around 7.7 million people, are currently facing critical food insecurity, according to WFP data.

On 16 July 2025, a major river convoy left Bor carrying 1,380 metric tonnes of food and humanitarian supplies. This marked the first shipment via the White Nile in several months, offering renewed hope to communities isolated by conflict and flooding.

In previous months, violence in Upper Nile had blocked traditional river routes, forcing humanitarian agencies to depend on expensive air drops to deliver assistance. These aerial deliveries are both logistically complex and financially unsustainable over the long term.

Carl Skau, Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of WFP, highlighted the significance of the resumption:

“River access is a game changer for humanitarian delivery in South Sudan. It allows us to move larger volumes of food faster and more cost-effectively to people in desperate need.”

Upper Nile remains one of the most severely affected areas in South Sudan. Clashes in the region since March have displaced tens of thousands of residents, cut off road access, and pushed at least 32,000 people into Phase 5 on the IPC scale, the most critical level of hunger classification, where famine is considered imminent.

WFP has so far delivered emergency food aid to over two million people in South Sudan in 2025, including around 300,000 in areas directly impacted by the violence in Upper Nile. However, these achievements remain at risk.

The humanitarian agency is currently grappling with a major funding gap that could force it to reduce or halt its operations just as needs are intensifying due to ongoing conflict and climatic challenges.

Since April 2023, over 1.2 million people have crossed into South Sudan from neighbouring Sudan, fleeing violence and instability. Many arrive in desperate conditions, hungry, traumatised and in need of immediate assistance.

Additionally, about 2.3 million children across South Sudan are at risk of acute malnutrition. Many of them live in remote areas affected by floods or conflict, making them difficult to reach even under normal circumstances.

In counties such as Uror in Jonglei State, where consistent aid delivery has been made possible, humanitarian interventions have shown measurable progress in lifting communities out of crisis-level hunger.

However, aid officials warn that without immediate donor support and secure humanitarian corridors, these fragile gains could be reversed.

WFP has stressed the importance of using moments of peace and open access to scale up assistance:

“As peace opens up access, we must seize these windows of opportunity,” said Skau. “Without urgent support, we risk losing the momentum and the lives saved through years of humanitarian work.”

Aid Summary – Key Figures: