In 2025, South Sudan continued to face multiple, overlapping shocks and trends that worsened the humanitarian situation and increased the needs of vulnerable communities.
South Sudan, as one of the seven East African countries in the African meningitis belt, continues to experience recurrent meningococcal meningitis outbreaks, with the most recent incident caused by serogroup X (NmX) in 2023.
Renewed hostilities between armed actors have intensified across northern and central South Sudan since late December 2025. Sustained fighting and aerial bombardment in parts of Jonglei State have triggered a sharp deterioration in security conditions, large-scale displacement, and widespread civilian flight.
Médecins Sans Frontières’ (MSF’s) hospital in Lankien, Jonglei state, South Sudan, was hit in an airstrike by the government of South Sudan forces during the night of Tuesday, 3 February 2026.
As of 3 February, around 280,000 people have been displaced as a result of the Jonglei conflict following renewed fighting and airstrikes since 29 December 2025, according to the RRC.
WHO South Sudan's "Voices from the Field" series highlights field-based efforts to combat health crises, including cholera, measles, and polio, through vaccinations, mobile teams, and community engagement.
Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors without Borders (MSF) warns that ongoing restrictions on humanitarian movements in parts of Jonglei State, South Sudan, are directly preventing lifesaving referrals of at least 20 critically-ill patients in need of urgent specialised care, placing their lives at immediate risk.
In November, an estimated 5.97 million people (42 per cent of the population) face Crisis or worse Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Phase 3+, including about 1.3 million in Emergency (IPC Phase 4).
An estimated 5.97 million people are currently in IPC Phase 3 or worse, including 28,000 in Phase 5 (Catastrophe). Projections indicate this could rise to 7.56 million during the 2026 lean season, with 3.26 million women and children acutely malnourished or at risk.
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.
Escalating conflict, displacement, access constraints, economic instability, climate shocks, and disease outbreaks continued to worsen the humanitarian crisis in South Sudan throughout October.
• South Sudan is facing overlapping crises, including violence, protracted economic decline and climate shocks, which continue to fuel food insecurity and malnutrition.
This assessment applies an integrated spatial detection and proximity modelling approach to quantify the impact of floods on critical infrastructure and community services across affected counties.
The Sudan crisis has become the world’s largest displacement and protection emergency. Since April 2023, some 14 million people have been forced to flee their homes, of whom nearly 12 million remain displaced —7.3 million within Sudan and over 4.2 million across borders into the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, Libya, South Sudan, and Uganda
As of 31 October, flooding has affected an estimated 1,024,500 people in 29 counties across six states, with Jonglei and Unity accounting for nearly 87 per cent of those impacted.
As of 30 October, an estimated 1,024,500 people have been affected by flooding across 29 counties in six states. Jonglei and Unity states account for nearly 87 per cent of those impacted.
South Sudan experiences recurring cholera outbreaks, driven by risk factors such as frequent flooding, displacement due to political instability, limited access to healthcare and inadequate water and sanitation services.
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.
South Sudan continues to experience severe and widespread flooding, with conditions worsening across multiple states. As of 23 October, an estimated 960,600 people have been affected in 26 counties across six states, with Jonglei and Unity accounting for more than 92 per cent of the total caseload.
In September, communities across South Sudan continued to face severe humanitarian challenges, including flooding, food insecurity, violence, displacement, and disease outbreaks. As of 30 September, over 639,000* people were affected by flooding in 26 counties across six states, with Jonglei and Unity worst hit.
