Humanitarian cuts leave thousands of South Sudanese without care
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Eye Radio
Illustrative image · Thirdman · Pexels · Licence PexelsFunding cuts and the withdrawal of humanitarian organisations are leaving thousands of people without essential healthcare in South Sudan, according to Médecins Sans Frontières. In Aweil and Akobo, women and children are arriving in critical condition after facility closures, medicine shortages and longer journeys to hospitals, MSF reports.
The number of functioning primary healthcare centres and units in South Sudan’s Northern Bahr el Ghazal State fell from 131 to 63 in January 2026, according to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). The organisation links the decline to funding shortages for the country’s health sector transformation programme and the withdrawal of humanitarian organisations.
In Aweil, the state hospital, the area’s only secondary healthcare facility, serves about 1.4 million people, according to MSF. The closure of the Ruangol health centre in February 2025, due to a lack of staff, medicines and a midwife, is forcing patients in particular to travel long distances to receive care.
MSF says its teams are receiving increasing numbers of women and children in critical condition in Aweil and Akobo, in Jonglei State. The organisation cites an 18-month-old boy, Rau, who was admitted to Aweil with severe malaria and moderate acute malnutrition after having to wait until his condition deteriorated before receiving treatment.
