UN appeals for Sudan aid amid worsening crises

KADUGLI, Sudan: The UN has appealed for a major increase in funding to aid Sudan with hundreds of thousands of people set to join millions in need of relief amid worsening economic and humanitarian crises.

Mark Lowcock, the head of UN humanitarian affairs, called on donors late Monday to provide $1.4 billion to assist more than seven million people in the East African country. Millions of people in Sudan have been displaced by conflict and have lived in camps for years. The call amends a UN appeal made in February over fears Sudan´s deepening economic crisis means more than one-and-a-half million more people will soon depend on aid to survive.

"The UN is trying to raise $1.4 billion this year for our humanitarian assistance for seven million people," Lowcock told AFP as he toured two camps for people displaced by war in the state of South Kordofan.

Failure to raise enough funds will leave nearly 5.3 million people at risk of being short of food and could lead to further crises, UN officials say. The state of South Kordofan, like Darfur and Blue Nile, has witnessed a brutal conflict since 2011 when African rebels took up arms against the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum, accusing it of marginalisation.