In 2025, the MENA region faced overlapping crises including conflict, displacement, economic collapse, disease outbreaks, and climate shocks, placing children at risk and disrupting access to services.
Since February 2025, 190,000 South Sudanese have sought refuge in countries neighboring South Sudan, including an estimated 45,000 in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), 39,000 in Ethiopia, 75,000 in Sudan, and 30,000 in Uganda.
In September, the security situation in Darfur and Kordofan States remained highly volatile and unpredictable, marked by intensified military confrontations, drone strikes, aerial bombardments and increasing intercommunal tension, leading to widespread insecurity, civilian displacement and growing humanitarian needs.
A total of 164,000 South Sudanese have sought refuge in countries neighboring South Sudan, including an estimated 33,000 in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), 35,000 in Ethiopia, 70,000 in Sudan, and 26,000 in Uganda. In addition, over 131,000 Sudanese refugees have returned from South Sudan in recent months.
Since the outbreak of armed conflict in Sudan on 15 April 2023, Africa Region faced a large-scale humanitarian crisis marked by one of the most significant displacement movements in recent years. Millions of people fled the violence, crossing into Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Uganda.
Since the start of the conflict, some 164,000 people have sought refuge in neighboring countries, including an estimated 33,000 in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), 35,000 in Ethiopia, 70,000 in Sudan, and 26,000 in Uganda.
According to a statement by the UN Spokesperson, and the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, civilians remain cut off without access to food and clean water, and public health is deteriorating amid outbreaks of diseases like cholera.
In 2025, the Regional RRP is designed to target the needs of 2.53 million refugees and 1.84 million members of the host community in the five main asylum countries, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, and Uganda.
There are now 12.0 million forcibly displaced due to the outbreak of conflict in Sudan since April 2023, including 7.7 million internally and 4.1 million in neighbouring countries.
UNHCR has declared an internal Level 2 emergency for Ethiopia and Sudan due to the escalating crisis in South Sudan, which will remain in force for six months until November 2025.
In June 2025, WFP assisted an estimated 3.6 million people across all activities. Of those assisted, 1.6 million people were in famine and risk of famine (RoF) areas in Sudan.
UNOCHA reports that over 9.3 million children are expected to suffer from high levels of acute malnutrition between June 2024 and May 2025 in Burundi, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda.
WFP is working to scale up assistance in Sudan for 7 million people by mid-year in Sudan. In Libya, in February, WFP distributed food assistance to 4,285 individuals and reached 342 children under five and 125 pregnant and breastfeeding women and girls.
