The United States Agency for International Development USAID has announced on Thursday a three-year Sustainable Agriculture for Economic Resiliency project in South Sudan, to address widespread food and nutrition deficiencies.
Jeff Bakken, USAID Mission Director in South Sudan says this project will target households experiencing stress and crisis levels of food insecurity, to prevent them from falling into worse levels of food insecurity.
More than three years of conflict have made South Sudan one of the world’s most food-insecure countries, with more than half the population facing life-threatening hunger.
The project will focus on sustainable livelihoods for people displaced by conflict and those who have returned to their home areas and have access to productive assets such as livestock and microenterprise activities.
‘We continue to adjust our programs to best assist the people of South Sudan considering the enormous challenges they are facing, including dire economic circumstances and widespread displacement due to conflict,’ said Bakken.
He hopes that the project will help restore and diversify household and community livelihoods enterprises like beekeeping, aquaculture, and livestock, among others.
‘This project is designed to complement our humanitarian assistance for the most at risk-people, by helping to empower those who have means of growing their own food and engaging in income-producing activities. We want to help those people to be able to support their families.’ He adds.
The project will operate in the legacy states of Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Lakes, Jonglei and Western Equatoria.