A leading international humanitarian aid agency, CARE, says malnutrition cases in South Sudan’s Unity region have surpassed the World Health Organisation’s emergency threshold.

According to recent nutrition surveys conducted by CARE, Mayom, Pariang and Rubkona counties registered 18.3 percent, 19.6 percent and 17.8 percent respectively of Global Acute Malnutrition rates.

The World Health Organisation’s has set the Global Acute Malnutrition emergency rates threshold at 15 percent.

CARE’s South Sudan country director Rosalind Crowther said there is an extreme increase in the cases of severe and moderate acute malnutrition in all three counties as compared to the same period last year.

“We anticipated an increase in malnutrition cases due to food insecurity but this has come too early as we have just entered the lean season. The situation is particularly alarming also because of the new violence outbreak which prevents people from accessing food. The worst of the food crisis is yet to come,” she said.

Crowther further appealed for more funds to enable them reach more vulnerable children, saying more than six million South Sudanese have been affected by the deteriorating food insecurity.

According to the survey, 125,000 children under five and 43,856 women have been screened for malnutrition while 43,467 children and 19,895 women have been treated for malnutrition and related diseases