LWF delivers assistance to flood affected South Sudanese in Jonglei State. Photo: LWF South Sudan
LWF supports communities in Jonglei State amid a deepening humanitarian crisis
(LWI) - In the wake of renewed fighting in South Sudan’s Jonglei State, forcing around 280,000 people to flee their homes in recent weeks and deepening an already severe humanitarian crisis, The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) is providing life-saving assistance.
Affected by decades of conflict, political instability, and climate-related disasters, the country faces one of the world’s largest displacement crises. Currently over 800,000 South Sudanese have been forcibly displaced internally, and more than 2 million have fled to neighboring countries. Nearly two-thirds of the 14.4 million population is severely food insecure.
LWF’s intervention focuses on strengthening education, protection, livelihoods, food security, human rights, shelter, and providing non-food items (NFIs) including cash assistance, as well as water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH).
Tabitha Akuol Anyiany Atem, 38, a widowed mother of five in Panyagor, Jonglei State explained the difference made by the one-off cash-for-food transfer of 513,000 South Sudanese pounds (USD 100 USD). “This support came at a critical moment,” she says. “I bought two 25 kg bags of sorghum, enough to feed my children for over a month. Now, even when they return from school hungry, we can have at least two meals a day. It has also eased the stress I faced when I could not provide.”
In 2020, devastating floods destroyed her home, livestock, and farmland, forcing her to move to Panyagor. Just as she began to recover, floods struck again in August 2025, displacing her family once more. Today, Atem and her children live in a fragile shelter along a dyke, without stable livelihood.
During flooding, LWF provides cash and NFIs such as shelter materials, kitchen items, mats, and mosquito nets, to protect the dignity and well-being of affected families, especially women and children.
Timely, life-saving assistance
More than 80,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) and the most vulnerable people in the host communities have benefited from LWF’s assistance, says Clémence Caraux-Pelletan, interim country representative, South Sudan. Out of this number, 70 percent comprise women, children, the elderly and people living with disabilities in the counties of Twic East, Duk and Bor in Jonglei state.
When flooding limits access to those affected, cash transfers ensure timely assistance, enabling families to meet urgent needs while preserving dignity and resilience, said Andrew Masaba, program development and quality coordinator. Additionally, LWF involves the host communities in activities that reduce the risk of disaster and increase resilience by rebuilding livelihoods and strengthening food security. The WASH activities include installation of boreholes, water treatment supplies, and training local committees to manage the systems in a sustainable manner.
LWF also supports women and girls in safe spaces offering awareness on sexual and gender-based violence, psychosocial care, dignity kits, and cash assistance, while also providing farmer training, seeds and tools.
LWF South Sudan delivers life-saving aid and long-term development across multiple states, supporting communities affected by conflict, displacement, and climate crises. Through a rights-based, gender-responsive approach, it strengthens resilience by integrating emergency response, livelihoods, protection, and social cohesion in partnership with local communities and institutions.
The initiatives in Jonglei State are supported by LWF partners: Australian Lutheran World Service; Canadian Lutheran World Relief; Act Church of Sweden; Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Global Affairs Canada; Global Nutrition Cluster, International Cooperative Alliance, and Kerk in Actie.
