WFP Warns of Looming Food Aid Cuts Amid Worsening Sudan Refugee Crisis

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has issued a grave warning that it may soon be forced to make “drastic cuts” to life-saving food assistance across multiple countries in Africa unless urgent funding is secured. In a stark alert, WFP said humanitarian operations in the Central African Republic, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Libya may “grind to a halt” in the coming months as its financial resources are exhausted. The warning underscores the spiraling impact of Sudan’s conflict on an already fragile humanitarian landscape.

Sudan Conflict Fuels Worsening Regional Humanitarian Emergency

The crisis stems from the ongoing war between Sudan’s national army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which erupted more than two years ago and has since displaced over four million people. The majority of these refugees have sought shelter in neighboring countries, including Chad, South Sudan, and Uganda—countries themselves grappling with severe levels of food insecurity and conflict.

WFP officials describe the current situation as a “full-blown regional crisis” playing out in some of the world’s most food-insecure regions. According to Shaun Hughes, WFP Emergency Coordinator for the Sudan Regional Crisis, “Millions of people who have fled Sudan depend wholly on support from WFP, but without additional funding we will be forced to make further cuts to food assistance. This will leave vulnerable families, and particularly children, at increasingly severe risk of hunger and malnutrition.”

Alarming Nutritional Shortfalls for Refugees

Conditions for Sudanese refugees are deteriorating rapidly, particularly in Uganda, which hosts one of the largest refugee populations in the world. WFP reports that many vulnerable refugees in Uganda are surviving on fewer than 500 calories a day, less than a quarter of the recommended daily nutritional intake. New arrivals continue to strain already overwhelmed support systems, and the outlook is grim without new international funding.

In Chad, a country now sheltering nearly one-quarter of all Sudanese refugees, WFP has warned that it will have no choice but to reduce food rations in the coming months if donor contributions do not increase. This could impact hundreds of thousands of individuals who rely on daily WFP support to survive.

Children at the Brink of Starvation

Children remain the most vulnerable demographic, with malnutrition rates among young refugees in reception centers in Uganda and South Sudan already breaching emergency thresholds. These children often arrive already malnourished after weeks or months of hardship in transit, only to face limited access to adequate nutrition upon arrival.

“Refugees are already severely malnourished even before arriving in neighboring countries to receive emergency assistance,” WFP said in its statement.

The agency has highlighted that prolonged hunger not only affects physical development but also cognitive ability and future productivity—posing long-term challenges for recovery and stability in host countries.

Humanitarian Funding Gap Threatens Stability

The WFP's funding shortfall is part of a broader trend of global donor fatigue amid a growing number of simultaneous humanitarian crises. With the scale of need growing exponentially across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, relief agencies are being forced into impossible decisions about where to allocate limited resources.

In addition to refugee crises, host countries such as Ethiopia, Egypt, and the Central African Republic are also facing domestic challenges including internal displacement, drought, political instability, and rising food prices—all of which compound humanitarian needs.

Urgent Call for International Solidarity

WFP’s urgent appeal is a plea for global solidarity in the face of mounting humanitarian distress. The agency has called on international donors, multilateral organizations, and private sector actors to step up their contributions before food stocks run dry.

Without immediate action, millions of displaced Sudanese and vulnerable populations in host countries may soon be left with no access to food, further fueling instability, disease, and migration.

WFP's alert serves as a critical reminder: while the headlines may shift elsewhere, the human cost of the Sudan conflict—and its regional repercussions—remain deeply consequential. Humanitarian support, WFP stresses, must not be allowed to fade at a time when it is needed the most.