JUBA, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- At least 30 people have been confirmed dead due to starvation in the last two months in the Greater Pibor Administrative Area in South Sudan near the border with Ethiopia, an official confirmed Tuesday.
Oleyo Akuer, minister of Information and Communication in the Greater Pibor Administrative Area, said that the Pibor area had not had rains since the beginning of this year, though the rains came recently in July.
"Hunger is everywhere since people didn't cultivate due to lack of rain, our people are suffering and they need support from humanitarian organizations and other well-wishers," Akuer told Xinhua over the phone.
Akuer said that some UN agencies such as the World Food Program (WFP) are already on the ground assisting some affected people despite not reaching many of the affected persons.
"Government is working hard and also talking with NGOs and UN agencies to provide food to affected people in the area, and we are calling for support such that our people are rescued from this situation," he said.
International charity Oxfam announced Monday that about 12 people died of starvation early this month in the Greater Pibor Administrative Area.
Manenji Mangundu, Oxfam country director in South Sudan, said in a statement issued in Juba that the scenes of suffering are heart-wrenching, adding that thousands of young and old are hungry. Mangundu noted that several children are severely malnourished because of going for days without anything to eat. Civilians have been forced to survive on wild vegetables and desert dates.
According to Mangundu, more than 7 million people are already facing extreme hunger, including nearly 79,000 people facing catastrophic levels of food insecurity, which is more than double that of last year. ■
