The charity Save the Children warned Thursday that millions of children in South Sudan are at risk of acute malnutrition and being cut off from essential services as aid organizations are forced to scale back operations due to significant funding cuts.

The alert followed a visit by a delegation of the group’s leaders to the areas of Bor and Maban, where they assessed the dire humanitarian situation exacerbated by an influx of refugees from the war in Sudan and internal displacement.

Danny Glenwright, CEO of Save the Children Canada, described a “multifaceted crisis” driven by conflict, climate change and a soaring cost of living. He said the effects of funding cuts were visible in health, nutrition, education and child protection programs.

“In a city like Bor, we’ve gone from having 21 or 22 nutrition centers to 15,” Glenwright said. “This means women… often can’t take time to travel to those fewer nutrition centers to get treatment for their children. So many children will go untreated.”

He said 2.3 million children under the age of five are at risk of acute malnutrition. Existing centers, now with fewer staff, are overwhelmed and may have to turn people away.

The delegation also visited education programs, where teachers are going unpaid and working voluntarily, leading to larger class sizes. School meal programs and other supplies have been cut.

Adrian Foster, CEO of Save the Children Switzerland, said the crisis is overwhelming a system already stretched to its limit. He noted that 70% of South Sudan’s population requires humanitarian assistance.

“This massive influx of refugees from Sudan, and at the same time internal displacement due to conflict and climate change, overloads the humanitarian system,” Foster said. “Food rations have been cut… and there is not enough food.”

The conflict in neighboring Sudan has sent over 1.2 million refugees into South Sudan, joining 2 million people already internally displaced.

Christopher Nyamandi, Save the Children’s country director in South Sudan, raised concerns that violence against children remains widespread.

“We were told by the government about child abductions… recruitment of children into armed groups, sexual violence against children as well as early child marriages,” Nyamandi said. “The children of South Sudan just want to be children. They want to play with their friends. They want to be in school.”

The charity called for urgent international funding to prevent a further deterioration of the humanitarian situation. Radio Tamazuj