Food aid and emergency agricultural assistance for destitute families in the Greater Wau Area

A peace treaty was signed for the youngest state on the African continent in August 2018. And yet the situation still remains precarious. Every third South Sudanese is on the move, every second person is starving. The civil war that has raged for years has resulted in one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes in the world.

There are currently approx. 4.9 million people facing extreme food insecurity, and this number is rising.

With the security situation deteriorating since conflict flared again in 2015, it has been impossible for most people to farm their land. This has resulted in astronomical prices at the local markets and across the entire country.

Caritas international is providing assistance in the Greater Wau Area. Its local partners, Caritas Wau and the Mary Help Association, have plenty of experience in the provision of emergency aid and development activities. Such as the procurement and distribution of food (sorghum, beans, vegetable oil, iodised salt, etc.) for 5,000 people, provisions that last for at least three months.

Other aid, such as soap, pans, mosquito nets, blankets and plastic sheeting will be distributed to 1,000 families. 200 households will receive cuttings and seeds (tomatoes, cabbage, okra, chilli, onions, girgir, kudra, rigla), as well as tools (spades, shovels, rakes, pickaxes, wheelbarrows, water canisters). All relief supplies can be acquired at the local markets in Wau. 5,000 individuals who have been extremely affected by the conflict will receive basic food rations for three months in order to survive. 1,000 badly affected families (approx. 7,000 individuals) will receive essential non-food articles for the short-term relief of their current situation. 200 families indirectly affected by the conflict (approx. 1,400 individuals) will receive seeds, cuttings and agricultural training in order to help them improve their food security for at least three months.

The Redel Foundation is supporting these efforts with €100,000.

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