Climate change in South Sudan

Source: World Food Programme

South Sudan has experienced record floods for three consecutive years, displacing thousands of people, drowning crops, livestock and villages. Photo: WFP/Marwa Awad

In South Sudan, climate shocks are linked to extreme fragility of food security. In fact, 60% of the population (7.2 million people) starve because of climate change. Floods resulted in thousands of displaced people, submerged acres of land, killed livestock and destroyed villages.

It is necessary to work with farmers to keep them up to date with the latest agricultural techniques and with new tools, so that they can grow food for their livelihood and sell the surplus in the markets. In a word, building resilience.

In the village of Ayok-Hong, in the north-east part of the country, the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), together with the Concern Worldwide organization, runs training courses in agricultural practices for 900 farming families. Water management, construction of small wells, land knowledge, choice of seeds to plant and care of crops, small irrigation systems, are some of the topics that are covered.

Abuk, a village farmer, thanks to these new skills is now able to grow larger quantities of sorghum and has also increased the variety of products she grows (tomatoes, onions, peanuts) and with which she feeds her family. She also sells the surplus at the market. This is a big step forward for her family's food security. As for Abuk in South Sudan, this is an important step forward for the food security of thousands of farmers.

Abuk grows both sorghum and groundnuts for sale and leafy greens and other vegetables for her own family. Photo: WFP/Musa Mahadi

Regardless where we live, everybody knows that climate change exists. However, not everybody understands the situation of those who suffer the effects of climate change, without having the tools to combat it and deal with the consequences. Together with wars, climate change is one of the main causes of misery, hunger and malnutrition in the world.

Droughts and floods disrupt the livelihoods of families and communities: the goal of humanitarian organizations is to help them deal with these events,in the right way and at the right time.

In order to do so, the WFP helps communities to anticipate climate risks, implementing projects to restore compromised ecosystems and protecting the most vulnerable from extreme weather events.