More than 420,000 people have been displaced by heavy rainfall and flooding in South Sudan, Save the Children, a charity organisation said on Friday.
The aid organisation said that nearly 60 per cent of the displaced were already facing extreme malnutrition before the unusually heavy rains began in July.
In total, an estimated 900,000 people – or 7 per cent of the population – have been affected by the floods, according to Save the Children.
It was difficult to get life-saving assistance to the displaced due to the floods, and aid support had to be temporarily suspended in some areas, the organization said.
“The floods in South Sudan have reached crisis point and children and their families are in urgent need of support.
“The communities affected are already some of the most vulnerable in the country,” said Save the Children South Sudan Director Rama Hansraj.
More rain is predicted in the coming weeks.
In October, South Sudan declared a state of emergency after flooding killed nine people and displaced 25,000 others in 27 out of the East African nation’s 32 states.