As the crisis in South Sudan escalates, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), alongside with the World Food Programme (WFP) spearheaded an appeal for millions of dollars to support South Sudanese refugees, UNHCR said on Tuesday.

The regional emergency response requiring 371 million US dollars will help thousands of South Sudanese refugees arriving in neighboring countries since the outburst of conflict in the world's youngest country last year, Adrian Edwards, UNHCR's spokesperson, told reporters.

According to UNHCR statistics, more than 204,000 people fled to Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia and Kenya since fighting erupted in mid-December between government troops and rival forces.

Edwards said that South Sudanese have recently been fleeing into neighbouring countries at a rate of nearly 2,000 per day, with most heading to Ethiopia and Uganda.

He noted that among the refugees -- with women, children and older people as the majority -- many have been arriving exhausted, nutritionally weak and in poor health, having coming from areas of South Sudan experiencing severe food shortages.

Amid the current situation in South Sudan, where some 708,900 people are internally displaced and 3.7 million faced a high risk of food insecurity, the potential for further cross-border movement is high.

The number of South Sudanese refugees across the region is expected to reach 340,000 by the end of the year.

"Given these trends, the regional emergency response will focus on protection activities and other life-saving needs. These include emergency food, water, sanitation and health," said Edwards, adding that UNHCR would "be developing and expanding refugee camps and other sites where basic services will be available."