JUBA, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations said on Thursday that it has allocated 10 million U.S. dollars to support life-saving humanitarian assistance for over 270,000 people in South Sudan.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the funds from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) will target communities in six high-risk counties.
"These areas have been severely affected by overlapping crises, leaving families in critical need of immediate humanitarian support," the OCHA said in a statement issued in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.
About 7.7 million people are projected to face high levels of acute food insecurity between April and July, according to the OCHA. It said about 63,000 people are expected to experience the most severe level of food insecurity.
"This timely and much-needed CERF funding will contribute toward mitigating acute vulnerabilities and protection risks through coordinated interventions led by United Nations agencies and their partners in South Sudan," said Anita Kiki Gbeho, UN humanitarian coordinator for South Sudan.
The OCHA said more than 130,000 people have been displaced since the escalation of conflict in Upper Nile State in March, including thousands who have reportedly crossed into Ethiopia.
It said the ongoing rainy season is expected to bring heavy flooding to areas already affected in previous years, noting that that country continues to face its most severe cholera outbreak on record, with 60,530 cases and 1,247 deaths reported nationwide as of May 18.
Gbeho said the CERF funding will help ensure the affected people receive food, cash assistance, seeds, tools, fishing kits, shelter, non-food items, water, sanitation and hygiene supplies, as well as health, nutrition and protection services. ■