The United Nations welcomed commitments from the transitional government of South Sudan on May 8th, 2026 to facilitate humanitarian access to Akobo County in Jonglei State, in order to address the humanitarian disaster caused by the outbreak of renewed violence since the beginning of March that has resulted in an estimated displacement of over 200,000 people. This has led certain sections of Akobo County to fall into the highest level of hunger and malnutrition as defined by food security analysts around the world. Dr. Humphrey Karamagi, Acting U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator, expressed his appreciation for the assurances provided by the government to allow aid teams safe and sustained access, calling such access “essential to enable urgent life-saving assistance to reach affected communities and help avert a further deterioration of this worrisome humanitarian crisis.” According to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than 100,000 of those displaced have fled into Tiergol, Ethiopia, while others remain scattered across Jonglei State, finding refuge in remote rural areas and wetlands with limited access to food, health care, and security.

According to the most recent Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis, Akobo is projected to face catastrophic levels of food insecurity and malnutrition—IPC Phase 5—from April to July 2026. Nationally, 7.8 million people, more than half of South Sudan’s total population, are projected to face critical food shortages or worse, with 73,300 in the most severe IPC Phase 5 category. “Hunger in South Sudan is intensifying, not stabilizing,” said Ross Smith, Director of Emergencies and Preparedness at the World Food Programme. Chandiga Kennedy, Humanitarian Manager for CARE South Sudan, described visiting Akobo Hospital after recent fighting: “When I walked into Akobo Hospital, it had been stripped of everything, beds gone, supplies looted. Patients who had returned were lying on the cold floor waiting to be treated.” According to OCHA, at least 33 health facilities across Jonglei State have been destroyed, looted, or damaged, leaving up to 1.4 million people without access to health care facilities. 

South Sudan’s situation highlights how quickly the consequences of political and military deadlock are absorbed by ordinary people. While commitments to facilitate humanitarian access are an important step, they are not sufficient in themselves in the absence of political developments necessary to halt the conflict which created this crisis in the first place. The pattern is consistent across South Sudan’s recent history: ceasefires are signed, they fail to hold; promises of protecting civilians go unfulfilled; humanitarian access is granted, then restricted. Sustained de-escalation, full implementation of the Revitalised Peace Agreement, and concrete protection for civilians, humanitarian workers, and medical infrastructure are the path through which South Sudan’s deepening crisis can be addressed.

The South Sudanese Civil War began in December of 2013 due to political disagreements between President Salva Kiir and Vice President Riek Machar which erupted into armed conflict that killed an estimated 400,000 people and displaced millions. In a 2018 peace agreement, known as the Revitalised Peace Agreement, the conflicting sides joined a unity government and called for the integration of armed forces, constitutional reform, and elections; however, the deadlines set in this agreement have been continuously deferred. The renewed fighting in Jonglei State began on March 6th, 2026, with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) forces retaking control of the Akobo town from government forces on April 13th, a month after government forces had seized the town. On April 17th, U.N. Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher briefed the U.N. Security Council, urged for unrestricted humanitarian access and renewed political efforts to reinforce the compliance to ceasefire agreements and move towards implementation of the Revitalised Peace Agreement.

The path forward depends on whether commitments translate into action. According to OCHA, humanitarian partners are working to implement an Akobo response strategy to increase emergency food assistance, protection services, nutrition, and health services. In addition, CARE and other humanitarian organizations are calling on donors to increase funding that would help the appropriate parties in providing assistance to the affected areas, as they are better placed and capable. However, the rainy season due to start in the following weeks will reduce access even further and pose the risks of malaria, cholera, and acute watery diarrhoea. For the displaced families sheltering in wetlands and across the Ethiopian border, children unable to return to school, and patients lying on the floors of looted hospitals, the value of these commitments will be measured by what reaches them in the weeks ahead.