South Sudan's Kiir promises safe access to starving civilians

Record ID: 276077

  • Title: South Sudan's Kiir promises safe access to starving civilians
  • Date: 21st February 2017
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF PARLIAMENTARIANS SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (English) SOUTH SUDAN PRESIDENT, SALVA KIIR, SAYING: "Those government and agencies that have already come back and resumed their work hearten us. The government will ensure that all humanitarian and development organizations have unimpeded access to the needy population across the country." PARLIAMENTARIANS (SOUNDBITE) (Engli
  • Embargoed: 7th March 2017 15:53
  • Keywords: South Sudan politics president Salva Kiir parliament famine war aid
  • Location: JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN
  • City: JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN
  • Country: South Sudan
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace
  • Reuters ID: LVA00264GSN5Z
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: South Sudan's President Salva Kiir promised aid agencies safe access to hunger-stricken civilians on Tuesday (February 21), a day after his government declared a famine in parts of the war-ravaged country.
    South Sudan has been mired in civil war since 2013 and the United Nations said on Monday (February 20) it was unable to reach some of the worst hit areas because of the insecurity.
    "Those government and agencies that have already come back and resumed their work hearten us. The government will ensure that all humanitarian and development organizations have unimpeded access to the needy population across the country," Kiir told parliament.
    Nearly half of South Sudan's 11 million people will lack reliable access to affordable food by July, the government predicts, because of the fighting, drought and hyperinflation.
    South Sudan has been hit by the same east African drought that has pushed Somalia back to the brink of famine, six years after 260,000 people starved to death in 2011.
    "The government is aware of the failure of crops last year in the region and so steps are being taken to mitigate the potential famine in that area. Towards this end, the government will increase the supply of basic food commodity in the area with the provision for subsidized prices," Kiir added.
    South Sudan is rich in oil resources. But, six years after independence from neighbouring Sudan, there are only 200 km (120 miles) of paved roads in a nation the size of Texas. In the fighting, food warehouses have been looted and aid workers killed.
    The conflict has increasingly split the country along ethnic lines, leading the United Nations to warn of a potential genocide.
    This month, in a sign the war was taking a turn for the worse, Kiir's government has been hit by high-profile defections.
    Two top military officials resigned their positions, citing ethnic favouritism, human rights abuses and others charges.
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