Thousands in South Sudan survive on the edge of an unfinished canal after relentless floods displaced them.
In Pajiek, mud and grass shelters house families whose villages have turned into swamps. Bichiok Hoth Chuiny, 70, fled her home in Gorwai after dykes failed. “Too much suffering,” she said.
The World Bank calls South Sudan the most vulnerable country to climate change, with over 379,000 displaced by floods this year.
Seasonal flooding in the Sudd wetlands has worsened, swallowing villages and ruining livelihoods. The Jonglei Canal, unfinished since colonial times, has become a refuge.
“We’d be pushed further without it,” said Pajiek’s chief, Peter Kuach Gatchang, who laments the lack of schools, clinics, and aid.
In nearby Paguong, a clinic struggles without supplies or paid staff. Patients risk snake bites while gathering food in floodwaters.
“Our old village is now a river,” said Nyabuot Reat Kuor, a mother relying on food aid. As support dwindles, survival grows harder.