UK Government promises extra £103mn aid to South Sudan

The British prime minister has promised an extra £103 million to aid relief efforts in South Sudan in an effort to decrease the numbers of refugees entering Europe.

Theresa May allocated the largest share of the extra funding to UK aid to South Sudan as Sudan announced it would no longer allow western aid agencies to operate in refugee camps inside its borders.

"Refugees are not getting the aid, education and economic opportunities they need," May said, whilst speaking at the UN General Assembly.

"We must do more. And as the second largest bi-lateral provider of assistance, the UK remains fully committed to playing a leading role."

The UK is the second largest aid provider to South Sudan after the United States, with total UK aid from the end of 2013 now totalling £357 million.

However, in a speech on Wednesday, Babiker Digna, Sudan's interior minister said that foreign NGOs would be banned from entering refugee camps in East Darfur, Blue Nile and West Kordofan states.

Aid is to be continued by UNHCR and other local aid organisations and only to those that have been registered as refugees.

According to Bibiker, Sudan is currently hosting 400,000 South Sudanese refugees who have been fleeing the country's most recent conflict.

UNHCR announced last Friday that a total of one million refugees had left the country, placing South Sudan alongside other war-torn countries, including Syria, Afghanistan and Somalia.