UNITED NATIONS, June 29 (Xinhua) -- The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said children continue to bear the brunt of multiple emergencies in Sudan as it is faced with rapid spread of acute watery diarrhea, a UN spokesman said here Thursday.
The acute situation follows a significant influx of South Sudanese refugees, and high rates of malnutrition, especially in the Jebel Marra Area of Central Darfur, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here.
UNICEF urgently requires 22 million U.S. dollars to provide lifesaving aid to more than 100,000 children, he said.
"With the continued conflict in South Sudan and widespread food insecurity, Sudan expects to receive three times as many refugees in 2017 than what was expected at the beginning of the year," said the spokesman.
More than 16,600 cases of acute watery diarrhea were found in the past 10 months alone, with 317 deaths. White Nile State in central Sudan is the most affected with over 5,800 reported cases. Almost 20 percent of the affected population are children.
"The current number of weekly reported cases is similar to levels we had at the peak of the rainy season last year. In the White Nile State, with almost 100,000 refugees living mostly in camps, the situation could worsen as the rainy season begins," said UNICEF's Sudan representative, Abdullah Fadil.
In addition, more than 155,000 refugees from South Sudan have taken refuge in Sudan since early this year, including about 100,000 children.
According to recent assessments in the newly accessible Jebel Marra area in Central Darfur, there are high levels of malnutrition, with severe acute malnutrition levels. Immunization rates are also very low with children as old as seven years having never been vaccinated and an estimated 23,000 school aged children in need of education support.
