Tonj North County, Warrap State

Demographics

2008 Census population: 165,222

2020 Population projection*: 262,302

2024 UN OCHA population estimate*: 651355

2024 IPC population estimate: 271,450

2025 UN OCHA population estimate*: 271487

Ethnic groups and languages: Rek Dinka (Noi, Abiem, Nyang, Konggor, Apuk-Padoc, Awan Parek, Leer, Lou-Ariik, Lou-Paher)

Displacement Figures as of September 2024: 23362 IDPs (-392 Sept. 2023) and 52519 returnees (4296 Sept. 2023)

IPC Food Security: November 2024 – Crisis (Phase 3); IPC Projections: December 2024 to March 2025 – Crisis (Phase 3); April 2025 to July 2025 – Emergency (Phase 4)

Economy & Livelihoods

Tonj North is located in Warrap State. It borders Tonj East County to the south-east, Tonj South County to the south, and Gogrial East County to the north-west. It also borders Unity State (Mayom, Koch and Mayendit Counties) to the east and Western Bahr el-Ghazal State (Jur River County) to the south-west.

The county is situated in the western floodplains sorghum and cattle livelihoods zone (FEWSNET 2018). It is the largest county in Warrap State and stretches from Western Bahr el-Ghazal State in the west to Unity State in the east. The landscape is characterized by flat grassland and tropical savannah. A recent study indicates that 70% of households engage in agriculture (FAO & WFP, 2018). Planting is conducted during the rainy season and the main crops are sorghum, simsim, millet, groundnut peas, okra and pumpkin. Fishing is also a key livelihood in the county, and dry fish is exported to markets such as Wau. Culturally, cattle are highly valued and play an important role in the society as a sign of social status and wealth. FAO and WFP reported in 2019 that ox-ploughs were used in the area, allowing for higher crop yields. However, access to such tools to maintain livelihoods may be lost during times of insecurity and displacement, and there can be cultural barriers to using cattle to pull ox-ploughs. Pastoralists throughout Tonj North – like others from Tonj South, Abyei and Lakes/Unity States – migrate during the dry season in search of water in various parts of the northeastern and eastern Warrap State. Livelihoods can be disrupted by recurring resource and migration disputes and cattle raiding in conflict-prone payams of Tonj North that border Tonj East County (Kirrik, Rualbet, Marial Lou) and Unity State (Akop and Alebek).

In November 2024, the IPC projected Tonj North as being at a crisis (IPC Phase 3) level of food insecurity, with conditions projected to persist at the same level through March 2025 before deteriorating to an emergency (IPC Phase 4) level, where conditions were persist until at least July 2025. Seasonal floods periodically destroy local cultivation and flash floods can wash away entire villages. This has been compounded by changing weather patterns, with unusual rainfall and periods of dry spells in the county, that disrupt cultivation and cattle movements. In some cases – such as in 2019 – this has led to flooding that has forced households to turn to different coping strategies to supplement food sources and generate income.

Infrastructure & Services

The county headquarters is in Warrap Town in Awul Payam. In recent years, conflict has caused displacement to Warrap Town and Marial Lou, interrupted service provision and disrupted local market functions.

Tonj North is home to one hundred and twenty-two (122) primary schools and eleven (11) secondary schools.

In December 2024, the WHO reported that Tonj North County had twenty-three (23) health facilities, of which fifteen (15) were functional. These functional facilities included nine (9) primary health care units (PHCUs), five (5) primary health care centres (PHCCs), and one (1) hospital. This means there were approximately 0.5 PHCUs per 15,000 people and 0.92 PHCCs per 50,000 people in the county at that time.

According to OCHA’s 2025 Humanitarian Needs Overview, there are an estimated 151,117 people in need in Tonj North County, which represents approximately 56% of the county’s total population reported by OCHA for 2025. For comparison, in 2024, OCHA reported that there were an estimated 346,197 people in need in Tonj North County, of whom 322,569 were non-displaced people, with the remainder comprising IDPs and returnees. According to OCHA’s (2019) Humanitarian Needs Overview for 2020, over 131,000 people had significant humanitarian needs in Tonj North, which had placed significant pressure on local infrastructure and services. This figure represented 209% of the estimated population for Tonj North County reported in the HNO in that. The fact this is over 100% may reflect the reality that population estimates for Tonj North County were too low and/or that many of those in need in Tonj North County are IDPs/refugees displaced from neighbouring areas or returnees that were not present in the county at the time of the last census on which estimates are based. Extensive flooding in Tonj North in 2019 led to increased inflow of IDPs and pressure on services, especially on healthcare as malaria, waterborne diseases, snake bites became an increasing problem. In the same year, the county also experienced a measles outbreak, which aid organizations responded to. The county’s swamps and stagnant water make access difficult particularly in the rainy season.

Conflict Dynamics

Similar to other counties in Warrap, key conflict drivers in Tonj North competition over limited water points and grazing land, and border disputes, leading to cattle raiding and cycles of revenge killing,. A report by UNDP in 2012 also cited youth unemployment and the wide presence of small arms as triggers for these types of disputes. The payams bordering Tonj East County (Kirrik, Rualbet, Marial Lou) and Unity State (Akop and Alebek) are the most conflict-prone. In recent years clashes have also been observed over borders between Awen Parek and Noi over Aporlok, and Aker has been a source of tension between Konggor and Atok communities.

Although Tonj North was not direly impacted by South Sudanese civil war, media reports documented that armed groups had stolen cattle from local communities in 2014. A new wave of violence sparked in October 2015 between communities in Tonj North and Tonj East County. A special court was created in Tonj North to hear cases of violence between communities of Warrap and Western Bahr el Ghazal (UNMISS, 2017). The Governor of the newly declared “Tonj State” (covering part of the area of Warrap State) declared that reconciling and uniting feuding communities in Tonj would be a top priority. However, in 2019, FEWSNET reported that further cattle raids in Tonj East had led to deaths as well as the loss of livestock.

Administration & Logistics

Payams: Awul (County Headquarters in Warrap), Marial Lou / Marialou, Rual Bet / Rualbet, Alabet / Aliebek, Aliek, Kirrik, Pagol, Manalor

Additional payams listed by local actors: Akop

Roads:

Tonj North does not have any primary roads that run through the state.

Tonj North is connected to Wau (Western Bahr el Ghazal State) and Tonj (Tonj South County, Warrap State) via a secondary road. Seasonal road conditions are unknown.

UNHAS-recognised Heli and Fixed-Wing Airplane Airstrips: None

References

FAO & WFP. (2019). Special Report: FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission to South Sudan. Retrieved from http://www.fao.org/3/ca3643en/ca3643en.pdf

FAO & WFP. (2018). Special Report: FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission to South Sudan. Retrieved from http://www.fao.org/3/ca3643EN/ca3643en.pdf

FEWSNET. (2018). Livelihoods Zone Map and Descriptions for the Republic of South Sudan (Updated).

IOM. (2013). Village Assessment Survey: County Atlas. Retrieved from https://iomsouthsudan.org/tracking/sites/default/publicfiles/documents/Warrap_TonjNorth_Atlas.pdf

UNDP. (2012). Community Consultation Report: Warrap State, South Sudan.

UNMISS. (2017). Special courts could aid peace process between warring groups in northern South Sudan. Retrieved from https://unmiss.unmissions.org/special-courts-could-aid-peace-process-between-warring-groups-northern-south-sudan

Reports on Tonj North

IOM. (2013). Village Assessment Survey: County Atlas. Retrieved from https://iomsouthsudan.org/tracking/sites/default/publicfiles/documents/Warrap_TonjNorth_Atlas.pdf