About one on five children in Malakal are malnourished, with nearly one in ten ‘severely’ malnourished, according to a recently completed humanitarian assessment.

Additionally, approximately 30,000 people sheltering at the UN base in Malakal are sharing 199 latrines, which means there is a ratio of 1 latrine per 151 people, which is only a third of the minimum humanitarian standard.

The amount of water available per person is about 8 litres, compared to a minimum humanitarian standard of 15 litres per day. Although camp residents used to leave the base to fetch river water, they can no longer do so because some were shot.

Malakal remains mostly deserted of civilians. Even those who were sheltering at churches and the hospital started to leave for the UN base. Opposition forces control the town. 

In a situation report today, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stated that the rate of malnutrition among children in Malakal is 18%, with ‘severe acute malnutrition’ currently at 7.8%.

“A rapid assessment in Malakal, Upper Nile State, showed out of 597 children under 5 years screened for malnutrition, 62 had moderate acute malnutrition and 47 had severe acute malnutrition,” OCHA stated.

In terms of water, IOM is the lead service provider in this field in the Malakal base and at a number of other sites in the state. OCHA explained, “In Upper Nile, the response in the UN base in Malakal is extremely strained as a result of partners evacuating and the number of people in need increasing.”

The UN agency noted disruption of other activities as well: “Resumption of fighting in Malakal interrupted general protection, psychosocial support and family tracing and reunification activities in the UN base and caused new cases of family separation.”

Photo: A young displaced girl washes clothes alongside a row of tents in the United Nations camp in Juba, South Sudan, 12 February 2014 (AP/Mackenzie Knowles-Coursin)

Related coverage:

Key humanitarian updates, 1 March

Key humanitarian updates, 25 Feb.

Key humanitarian updates, 23 Feb.