An estimated 2.5 million people across South Sudan were living with the effects of drought-like conditions as of 30 September, according to a humanitarian snapshot published by ReliefWeb. The report attributes the figure to South Sudan's Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC) and humanitarian partners.
ReliefWeb says the combination of ongoing conflict and a prolonged dry spell is pushing people off their land and deepening food insecurity, with the hardest-hit areas spanning Eastern Equatoria, Western Equatoria, Warrap, Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Jonglei, Unity, Upper Nile, and the Abyei Administrative Area.
Why it matters
The snapshot points to a crisis that is compounding on several fronts at once. Families that have lost access to farms, livestock, and other income sources are increasingly turning to measures the report describes as negative coping strategies — eating wild foods, migrating under distress, and selling off productive assets. Each of those steps erodes a household's ability to recover, which means the effects of the drought are likely to outlast the dry conditions themselves.
At the same time, the report says the country's health system is already stretched thin by multiple simultaneous outbreaks, leaving less capacity to absorb new shocks. The result, according to ReliefWeb, is a population facing hunger, displacement, and disease at the same time rather than in sequence.
Malnutrition above emergency thresholds
Nutrition assessments carried out by humanitarian partners found the situation remains critical in parts of Jonglei and Upper Nile states, according to the snapshot.
In Jonglei, screenings of children under five in Ayod, Akobo, and Nyirol counties recorded global acute malnutrition rates above 34 per cent. In Upper Nile, the rate reached 18 per cent in Panyikang and 28 per cent in Malakal. Both figures sit above the 15 per cent emergency threshold set by the World Health Organization, ReliefWeb reports.
Those numbers matter because global acute malnutrition at such levels is a measure of how many young children are already severely undernourished, not a projection of future risk. The report does not offer a forecast for how those rates might move in the coming months.
Fresh fighting drives new displacement
Conflict continued to force people from their homes during September, according to the snapshot.
In Unity State, renewed clashes between opposition factions in Panyijiar County on 15 September displaced more than 34,000 people, the RRC reported. ReliefWeb says the violence also disrupted humanitarian operations in the area — a detail that suggests aid groups faced obstacles reaching people at the moment they needed help most.
In Upper Nile State, an inter-agency rapid needs assessment identified more than 24,000 internally displaced people across five payams in Ulang County, following conflict and displacement.
The Abyei Administrative Area saw its own episode of violence the same day. Inter-communal fighting at the Amiet market on 15 September killed dozens of people and displaced more than 4,300, according to the RRC and its partners. The report says the violence triggered widespread looting and destruction of the market, which disrupted trade and cut off a source of livelihood for people in the area.
Taken together, the three incidents show how quickly displacement can be triggered and how varied the causes are — factional fighting, inter-communal violence, and the market destruction that follows. Each carries its own set of consequences for the people affected.
Cholera persists two years on
Cholera remains a major public health emergency in South Sudan, according to the snapshot. Since the first cases were reported in September 2024, the country has recorded 112,148 cases and 1,723 deaths.
Transmission has declined, ReliefWeb reports, but active cases are still being identified, particularly in Unity, Upper Nile, and Jonglei states. The persistence of the outbreak two years after it began indicates that the conditions that allow the disease to spread — likely related to water, sanitation, and population movement — have not been fully resolved.
The report also notes that mpox, measles, hepatitis E, and polio outbreaks are ongoing. Together, these outbreaks are placing additional strain on health services and response capacity in several counties, according to ReliefWeb. The snapshot does not break down case numbers for each of those diseases.
In response to the regional threat of Ebola virus disease, the report says preparedness efforts have been stepped up in coordination with neighbouring countries. It does not specify which neighbours or what those measures involve.
What to watch
The snapshot offers a point-in-time picture as of 30 September, and the next update will show whether malnutrition rates in Jonglei and Upper Nile shift, whether cholera transmission continues to fall, and whether the displacement figures from Panyijiar, Ulang, and Abyei grow as assessments reach more people.
