Thousands of women and children fleeing the Central African Republic (CAR) for Cameroon arrive in a "shocking state," malnourished and dangerously ill, the chiefs of two U.N. humanitarian agencies said Wednesday, warning that their funds are nearly exhausted and that hundreds of thousands of people could die unless urgent contributions are received. "We must all act now or more children will needlessly suffer. We must intervene to save lives and prevent a worsening situation," said U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Antonio Guterres and World Food Program (WFP) Director Ertharin Cousin. Refugees from CAR have been arriving in Cameroon since early December. They now are arriving at a rate of up to 2,000 people per week, the majority of them women and children, according to a joint news release by the UNHCR and the WFP. Many of the refugees have walked for weeks or months to reach Cameroon on what the UNHCR has called "a journey of starvation and death." "The challenge is much more than just ensuring safe haven—it's about trying to save people's lives after they arrive," Guterres said. The WFP says between 20 and 30 percent of the arriving refugees are acutely malnourished, well above the global emergency threshold of 15 percent. The UNHCR has requested $22.6 million for its programs, of which only $4.2 million has been received so far. The WFP is seeking $15.6 million over eight months, and its programs are feeding only 30 percent of intended recipients.
