The world must come together to support the people of Sudan

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Sudan is currently experiencing a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions.

More than six months since fighting erupted on 15 April, civilians are paying the price of the ongoing conflict. About half of the population – 24.7 million people, including 14 million children – needs humanitarian aid and protection assistance. About 5.8 million people are displaced inside Sudan or have fled to neighboring countries, half of whom are children.
Women make up 69% of the internally displaced persons (IDPs), including those in war zones, and data from Chad indicates that 90% of the refugees crossing the borders are women and girls. Similarly in Egypt, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has recorded that most of the registered households upon crossing the borders were female-headed ones.

The situation is dire, with millions of people – especially in Khartoum, Darfur, and Kordofan – lacking access to food, water, shelter, electricity, education, health care, and nutrition. As the humanitarian situation deteriorates, the communities’ coping capacity has weakened.

Hunger and malnutrition were already at record levels before the fighting, now, an estimated 20.3 million people – 42% of the population – face acute food insecurity. Of these, 6.3 million people are at emergency levels of hunger, only one step away from famine. Over 18 million people lack access to improved sanitation and around 8 million people practice open defecation. About 3.5 million children under five years are acutely malnourished, of whom 700,000 suffer from severe acute malnourishment and are at 11 times higher risk of death compared with their healthy peers. This adds to the burden of care on women and girls and exposes them to multiple risks in the context of the armed conflict.

The parties to the conflict must put an end to harming civilians and respect international humanitarian law, as agreed under the Jeddah Declaration of Commitment to Protect the Civilians of Sudan. The parties must allow civilians safe passage. People fleeing conflict – especially women, children, and those with special needs – must be able to do so safely. Attacks on hospitals, schools, and other essential civilian infrastructure must stop. Access to critical items and services must be guaranteed. All health facilities occupied by parties to the conflict must be vacated. De-escalation, dialogue, and a cessation of hostilities are essential to resolve the crisis.It is time to silence the guns. The world must come together to support the people of Sudan in their time of need. We must act now to prevent further loss of life and suffering. Together, we can make a difference.