UN warns child malnutrition reached alarming levels in Sudan News
Medhus, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
UN warns child malnutrition reached alarming levels in Sudan

The UN raised concerns on Thursday about catastrophic levels of child malnutrition in Sudan’s North Darfur state and Greater Kordofan region due to ongoing armed conflict, warning of a looming famine crisis across the country if immediate action is not taken.

Based on a study conducted by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a global food security monitoring system, acute malnutrition exceeded critical thresholds in two areas of North Darfur following the fall of El Fasher to paramilitary control in October 2025. The IPC also noted that malnutrition was rapidly spreading in the region of Greater Kordofan, with famine already confirmed in Kadugli and severe conditions expected in Dilling and the Western Nuba Mountains.

UN experts pointed out that these high malnutrition rates suggested an increased risk of excess mortality and noted that similar conditions can be found in other conflict-affected regions. They further added that the number of cases of acute malnutrition is projected to rise in 2026 as violence between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continues to escalate.

Additionally, experts emphasized that the primary cause of the spread of malnutrition was the ongoing armed conflict in Sudan, which has resulted in the destruction of food systems, the disruption of markets, and the collapse of health and water infrastructure. Therefore, the UN called for the immediate cessation of hostilities and the implementation of measures to facilitate large-scale humanitarian aid in order to prevent further decline.

This IPC study echoed previous UN reports, which identified famine conditions in five regions across Sudan, with the potential for expansion to five additional areas, while 17 other regions were at high risk. However, the IPC stressed that Thursday’s study does not represent a formal famine classification and that it only seeks to highlight the worsening crisis in Sudan.

The conflict between the SAF and RSF, which began in 2023, has plunged Sudan into a severe humanitarian crisis marked by disease outbreaks, killings of civilians, famine, and large-scale displacement. In 2025, the UN reported that nearly 30 million Sudanese citizens required urgent humanitarian assistance as the conflict intensified, despite international calls for a ceasefire. The situation further deteriorated after the RSF captured El Fasher in 2025, committing multiple human rights violations that may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. In January 2026, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk condemned the use of child soldiers and the diversion of humanitarian funds for weapons, highlighting that civilians are still living under ongoing atrocities, including killings and torture, as the conflict approaches its third year.

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