The first shipment of wheat donated by Ukraine under the Grain from Ukraine initiative has arrived in Sudan, the UN World Food Program (WFP) said on its website.

"This donation will enable WFP to support people whose lives have been completely upended by the war. We are deeply grateful to Ukraine and Germany for supporting the Sudanese people in their greatest hour of need," WFP's Country-Director in Sudan Eddie Rowe said.

According to the press release, the Ukrainian grain arrived in Port Sudan and is being loaded onto WFP trucks for emergency food distributions in the war-torn country. This in-kind food donation will be a core part of food rations provided to one million conflict-affected people in Sudan for one month.

It is expected that the 7,600 tonnes of wheat flour will be provided to families, many of whom have fled their homes due to the fighting and are struggling every day to meet their food needs. The delivered grain is sufficient for one month.

This donation has arrived at a critical time in Sudan's hunger crisis as fighting continues to spread ahead of the lean season in May, when food typically becomes scarcer, and hunger rises, WFP said.

WFP has been warning of a looming hunger catastrophe as the lean season approaches if civilians do not receive food assistance. Currently nearly 18 million people face acute food insecurity in Sudan, of which nearly 5 million are in emergency levels of hunger. WFP has already provided around 7 million people with emergency food and nutrition support since the conflict began last April, yet needs continue to grow.

The shipment – part of Ukraine's humanitarian Grain from Ukraine initiative launched by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy – was made possible by the German Federal Foreign Office, which covered entire operating costs of EUR 15 million. This includes the transportation costs of the wheat from Ukraine to Sudan and the implementation and distribution within the country to people in need.