Sudan is experiencing an alarming deterioration in its food security. The risk of famine in the coming months, as warned by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, needs urgent action. There is no time to lose to save lives and prevent famine.

An estimated 19.5 million people (41% of the country’s population) are experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity, including 5 million facing emergency levels of food insecurity. Without immediate action to reverse the current trajectory, the number of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition could exceed the projected 825,000. The number of food insecure areas, initially assessed at 14, is expected to double.

Conflict is the key driver of Sudan's hunger crisis, displacing millions of people, damaging critical infrastructure and disrupting healthcare provision, food production, supply chains and markets. The situation is being exacerbated by systematic obstruction of aid and the effects of El Niño, which has resulted in reduced rainfall and increased drought across over half of Sudan.

The parties to the conflict bear primary responsibility for alleviating the suffering of the Sudanese people. We urge the parties to lift all impediments on humanitarian assistance, allow and facilitate full, safe, rapid, and unimpeded humanitarian access, and protect humanitarian personnel. Left unchecked, these impediments will hamper the ability of the humanitarian response to address famine risk. In practice, we call on the parties to:

• Authorise humanitarian operations through all crossline and cross-border routes, including air access into Darfur which will allow for the rapid deployment of aid operations and timely aid worker medical evacuations;
• Sustain presence and protection of humanitarian personnel throughout Sudan, including reducing delays for visas and customs clearance, increasing the duration of visas and travel permits and removing additional permits, taxations and other bureaucratic requirements slowing aid delivery;
• Refrain from strikes on civilian infrastructure, including agriculture and food systems, which are critical to the delivery of essential services to the civilian population.
• Strengthen civil-military coordination to ensure the safety of humanitarians and humanitarian sites.

In the face of a potential famine, we call on all members of the international community to urgently scale up funding in response to increased needs and support efforts to ensure assistance reaches those most in need. We further encourage development and financial institutions to adapt their ongoing programmes to the food security situation and focus on the areas of greatest need. Together we must act without delay to avert famine by supporting the winter cropping season and strengthening locally led responses.

We stand with the people of Sudan and humanitarian organisations who are working tirelessly and under extremely challenging conditions to provide life-saving assistance.

Signatories:

The Hon Dr Anne Aly MP, Minister for International Development of Australia

Beate Meinl-Reisinger, Federal Minister for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria

Minister Maxime Prévot, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Affairs and Development Cooperation, Belgium

Mr. Hristo Dikanski, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria

Hon. Randeep Sarai, Secretary of State for International Development, Canada

H.E. Mr Gordan Grlić Radman, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia

Petr Macinka, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic

Mr. Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Denmark

Hadja Lahbib, European Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management

Margus Tsahkna, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Estonia.

Ville Tavio, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development, Finland

Jean-Noël Barrot, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, France

Dr. Johann Wadephul, Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs, Germany

Helen McEntee, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ireland

Antonio Tajani, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy

Baiba Braže, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia

Xavier Bettel, Minister for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, Luxembourg

Christopher Fearne, Minister for Foreign and European Affairs, Republic of Malta

S.W. Sjoerdsma, Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Netherlands

H E Mr Åsmund Aukrust, Minister of International Development, Norway

Radosław Sikorski, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland.

Paulo Rangel, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Portugal

Mr. Sebastian Dănuț Neculăescu, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Romania

H.E. Mr. Juraj Blanár, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic

H.E. Mr Tone Kajzer, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia

H.E. Mr José Manuel Albares, Minister for Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation of Spain

Benjamin Dousa, Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade, Sweden

Dominik Stillhart, Head of Swiss Humanitarian Aid, Deputy Director General of Swiss Development Cooperation

Massad Boulos, Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs, United States of America

Kirsty McNeill MP, Minister of State for International Development of the United Kingdom

Cyprus

Hungary