800,000 more people in South Sudan tread in the precipice of danger and could suffer more if no humanitarian assistance is provided, a United Nations report has revealed. The report which is titled the ‘Humanitarian Needs Overview South Sudan’ was done by the Office of Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) to look into the humanitarian needs and quantify the response necessary to meet them.

 The study, released in January 2021, says a total of 8.3 million people in South Sudan are going to be in dire need of humanitarian assistance in 2021. The figure represents an increase of 800,000 from 2020’s 7.5 million people that were hard-hit with disasters.

It partly reads: ‘‘People’s physical and mental wellbeing, living standards and coping mechanisms are expected to further deteriorate in 2021. Some 8.3 million people in South Sudan are estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance in 2021. These include 8,000,000 South Sudanese women, men, girls and boys and 310,000 refugees and asylum seekers.’’

The report covers the scenarios in 78 counties out of which 72 of them are in the red line screaming of urgent response. Five of them are in severe countries. Stung by the on-going perennial deadly conflicts that have interfered with instability, residents of Jonglei State and Pibor were hoping for a ceasefire between the communities that has so far been elusive. The talks were midwifed by the state and local administrations at Freedom Hall in Juba. But that is not all for them. They are listed in the OCHA report as the people with most critical humanitarian needs.

‘’The increase in needs is largely driven by the rising food insecurity. When consulted, food insecurity or lack of food was identified as the primary challenge or one of the primary challenges faced by the majority of affected people across sex and age groups,’’ the report explains.

‘’Poor living conditions, especially for the displaced, weaken people’s health and security and affect their dignity. Among the most vulnerable people are newly displaced families; communities hosting large numbers of displaced and/or recently returned people; and households that are headed by a single parent or looking after older people or people with disabilities,’’ it further says.

 The HNO study used direct interview as the data collection method in the remote places and the urban areas. Breakdown of numbers Children comprise the majority of the 8.3 million people with 54 per cent, followed by women at 24 per cent and people special needs at 15 per cent. A breakdown of the number shows that boys are the worst hit and comprise the largest victims at 2.2 million, girls 2.1 million, women 1.9 million and men 1.8 million. In this number, South Sudanese people are 8 million while the remaining 310,000 are asylum seekers and refugees.

The report says there are 1.6 IDPs in South Sudan, and out of this number, 230,000 arrived during the first nine months of 2020, while another 125,000 are in protection in the civilian sites. What makes vulnerable is the fact that the country lacks proper infrastructure and most health facilities are not properly equipped.

 ‘’Out of approximately 2,300 health facilities, more than 1,300 are non-functional. Of the functioning health facilities, 57 per cent are supported by humanitarian and development partners and many remain in areas that are not easily accessible by the communities, i.e., close to a quarter of IDPs and returnees live in settlements further than 5 km from a functional health facility,’’ the report states in part. Another risk is civil war that worsens the lives of most people especially in conflict-prone areas such as Jonglei States and Pibor. The report reveals that ‘between January and October, at least 2,122 civilians were killed and 1,496 wounded.’ In this figure were at least 301 women and 155 children.50 Surging subnational violence resulted in more than 1,500 civilians killed during the first half of 2020.

The violence was witnessed in Jonglei, Lakes and Warrap. Yei and Unity State lead the chart in sexual harassment characterised by gang rape. The same has been replicated in Warrap and Lakes States where the atrocities have been blamed on security officers and cattle raiders.