The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has warned of a looming humanitarian catastrophe in South Sudan, stating that essential services for nearly 187,000 displaced persons could collapse within weeks due to a critical $6 million funding shortfall.
Highlighting the immediate risk to basic survival conditions in the country’s most vulnerable regions, the organization issued an urgent appeal as the crisis centers on displacement sites in Bentiu and Malakal where IOM provides vital clean water, sanitation, and flood protection services.
According to IOM Chief of Mission Vijaya Souri, the lack of funds will cause water taps to run dry and latrines to overflow, while the inability to maintain flood dikes during the current dry season could leave the Bentiu camp submerged during the upcoming rains.
Health experts further warn that the suspension of these services will likely trigger rapid outbreaks of waterborne diseases such as cholera, impacting not only the camp residents but also over 554,000 people in the neighboring towns of Malakal, Bentiu, and Rubkona.
This disruption threatens to force families into renewed displacement in search of basic needs, further destabilizing a nation where nearly two million people are already internally displaced and approximately 10 million require humanitarian assistance.
The requested $6 million is described as a vital lifeline to sustain operations through the end of 2026, and without immediate intervention, efforts to transition these sites to sustainable management could be entirely derailed by a preventable public health emergency.
