The situation in South Sudan has proven to be unpredictable and volatile. New hotspots of violent conflict and civil unrest have continued to emerge and levels of severe acute food insecurity have become progressively worse. In addition to years of fighting and political instability, the country faces natural hazards, disease and pests, such as the desert locust, and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Collectively, these risks have had and continue to have a catastrophic impact on the lives and livelihoods of South Sudanese, the majority of whom rely on agriculture, livestock, forestry and fisheries as their main source of income. To respond to humanitarian needs, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has launched the latest iteration of its Emergency Livelihood Response Programme (ELRP) in South Sudan, which was first introduced in early 2014. The document presents the multiyear Programme for 2021–2023 and outlines how FAO aims to save lives, to enhance households' livelihoods and own food production, and to improve their resilience to future shocks. FAO revises its strategy each year to address the ever-emerging challenges facing food security and agriculture, integrate lessons learned and adapt modalities to the prevailing situation.

The resilience of communities in South Sudan has declined and continued to be eroded since the eruption of conflict in late 2013. Compounded by repeated outbreaks of violent conflict, the deterioration of the food security situation and subsequent economic shocks have negatively affected households’ coping capacities and livelihoods. Communities dependent on agriculture have seen their productive assets depleted, looted and destroyed, limiting their ability to recover and increasing their reliance on external aid. At the time of writing this Strategy, two thirds of the population cannot access the food needed to cover their daily needs. The FAO Resilience Strategy 2019–2021 lays the foundation for a multi-track approach to strengthening resilience, depending on needs, vulnerability and access. Drawing from the experience gained from implementing the previous FAO Resilience Strategy (2016–2018), FAO has incorporated lessons learned, as well as the latest knowledge in the field of resilience, while responding to the changing context and priorities in South Sudan. This Strategy seeks to strengthen the foundation of FAO’s resilience activities in South Sudan, and will guide the design of FAO programmes to enhance their relevance, efficiency, effectiveness and impact.

FAO teamed up with the World Bank on this strategic analysis of the investment, policy and institutional support needed to shift South Sudan’s agriculture sector from humanitarian relief to a development-oriented growth path. The team carried out a thorough review of lessons learned in South Sudan and other conflict-affected countries and held consultations with a wide range of stakeholders in the country. As a result, four complementary investment strategies were identified: agriculture production and food security; community resilience and social capital; value chain development and jobs; and peace consolidation. The authors advocate for combining these four strategies in a flexible way, depending on how the shocks currently affecting agriculture (conflict, violence, macro-economic instability, governance, natural disasters) evolve in the coming years. The Government of South Sudan and the World Bank consider this analytical work a milestone that will pave the way for future investments in agriculture and rural development in the country. This publication is part of the Country Investment Highlights series under the FAO Investment Centre’s Knowledge for Investment (K4I) programme.

The annual FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission (CFSAM) was conducted from 1 to 16 December 2022 to estimate the cereal production in South Sudan during 2022 and assess the overall food security situation in the country. The CFSAM reviewed the findings of several crop assessment missions conducted at planting and harvest time from June to November 2022 in different agroecological zones of the country. All missions were carried out by a crop assessment Task Force Team comprising staff from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MoAFS), the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the respective State Ministry of Agriculture (SMoA). Task Force Team members were trained to conduct rapid assessments using established CFSAM instruments, protocols and techniques, including walking transects, scoring standing crops and livestock body conditions according to the Pictorial Evaluation Tool (PET),ii crop cuttings to assess yields, performing key informant interviews and farmer case studies. After the signing of the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan in September 2018, there has been a significant number of returns of displaced farming households, which contributed to the production increases. Therefore, the cessation of all hostilities and the implementation of the agreement is the primary recommendation to progress in terms of agricultural development in order to improve the country’s food security situation. While understanding the complexity of the reconciliation and peace-building process, the recommendations are made assuming that the national peace deal continues to hold, for a better future for the people of South Sudan.

New evidence this year corroborates the rise in world hunger observed in this report last year, sending a warning that more action is needed if we aspire to end world hunger and malnutrition in all its forms by 2030. Updated estimates show the number of people who suffer from hunger has been growing over the past three years, returning to prevailing levels from almost a decade ago. Although progress continues to be made in reducing child stunting, over 22 percent of children under five years of age are still affected. Other forms of malnutrition are also growing: adult obesity continues to increase in countries irrespective of their income levels, and many countries are coping with multiple forms of malnutrition at the same time – overweight and obesity, as well as anaemia in women, and child stunting and wasting.

This catalogue aims to improve the dissemination and outreach of FAO’s knowledge products and overall publishing programme. By providing information on its key publications in every area of FAO’s work, and catering to a range of audiences, it thereby contributes to all organizational outcomes. From statistical analysis to specialized manuals to children’s books, FAO publications cater to a diverse range of audiences. This catalogue presents a selection of FAO’s main publications, produced in 2021 or earlier, ranging from its global reports and general interest publications to numerous specialized titles. In addition to the major themes of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, it also includes thematic sections on climate change, economic and social development, and food safety and nutrition.

This catalogue aims to improve the dissemination and outreach of FAO’s knowledge products and overall publishing programme. By providing information on its key publications in every area of FAO’s work, and catering to a range of audiences, it thereby contributes to all organizational outcomes. From statistical analysis to specialized manuals to children’s books, FAO publications cater to a diverse range of audiences. This catalogue presents a selection of FAO’s main publications, produced in 2021 or earlier, ranging from its global reports and general interest publications to numerous specialized titles. In addition to the major themes of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, it also includes thematic sections on climate change, economic and social development, and food safety and nutrition