The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) reported in a new study released Thursday that food assistance for Sudan is on the verge of running out, warning of a total suspension within two months due to a critical funding shortfall. The report, titled “Families in Sudan on the Edge,” stated that millions affected by the conflict—which has raged for over two years and nine months between the army and the Rapid Support Forces—will be deprived of essential supplies by late March 2026 unless immediate financial resources are secured. It noted that current food rations have already been reduced to the bare minimum required for survival.
The UN agency characterized the Sudanese crisis as the world’s largest hunger and displacement catastrophe, emphasizing that the brutal thousand-day conflict shows no signs of abating. According to published figures, approximately 21 million people suffer from acute hunger, while 12 million have been forced to flee their homes. The report further highlighted the deteriorating health of 3.7 million children and pregnant or breastfeeding women suffering from malnutrition; in parts of North Darfur, over half of young children are acutely malnourished, reflecting a society pushed to the brink of total collapse.
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On the ground, the report monitored the spread of famine in El Fasher, North Darfur, and Kadugli, South Kordofan, following months of suffocating blockades imposed by the Rapid Support Forces. This aligns with previous findings by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification regarding the Zamzam displacement camp. Furthermore, the WFP warned that residents of the besieged city of Dilling are facing famine-like conditions, despite the technical challenges in verifying field data caused by communication blackouts and restricted movement in conflict zones.
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Regarding financial requirements, WFP Emergency Director Ross Smith asserted that a window of opportunity still exists to prevent the disaster from worsening, provided that $700 million is urgently secured to cover relief operations through June. Over the past six months, the programme successfully delivered monthly aid to 1.8 million people in the most famine-prone areas. In total, its emergency, food, and cash interventions reached 10 million people in hard-to-access regions; however, these hard-won humanitarian gains are now at risk of being reversed due to the lack of funding.