UN releases emergency funds in response to South Sudan floods

UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths has allocated $13 million from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund for an urgent response to large-scale flooding in South Sudan, said the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Some 809,000 people have been affected by massive flooding in many parts of the country, compounded by an escalation of violence in areas such as Tambura, Xinhua news agency quoted the OCHA as saying.

Humanitarian agencies have scaled up their response to meet the affected people's needs. This is the third year in a row that large parts of South Sudan have been flooded, it said.

The allocation contributes to the response to one of the worst and most prolonged floods.

UN agencies and their partners will provide humanitarian assistance and protection to people impacted by the floods who have limited or no access to basic services and supplies, said OCHA.