Sudan

Since the onset of civil war in April 2023, millions of people in Sudan have suffered from loss of livelihoods, destruction of infrastructure, and disruption of essential services. With the war still underway, Sudan is facing the world's largest displacement crisis—with 6.5 million displaced people internally and another 1.7 million driven into neighboring countries—and a surge in acute food insecurity, soaring poverty levels, and extensive losses in income, employment, and productive assets.

Conflict continues to drive acute food insecurity and food assistance needs in Sudan, according to a recent FEWS Net alert.

Fighting in the country has expanded into Sudan’s southeast region, a major agricultural production and food storage area. The region typically accounts for more than 50 percent of Sudan’s annual domestic cereal production. Conflict-led disruptions to both agricultural production and trade, including destruction of infrastructure, pose a substantial threat to food availability throughout the country, reports FEWS Net.

As noted in the Global Report on Food Crisis Mid-Year Update, conflict remains one of the major causes of food crises worldwide. Two recent alerts from FEWS Net echo this finding in both East and West Africa, where conflict is driving acute levels of food insecurity and hunger in both Sudan and Burkina Faso.

The outbreak of war in Sudan on April 15 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) caused major disruptions in economic activities in the capital Khartoum and other areas of the country. More than six months later, the conflict continues, and its impacts on Sudan’s economy and on livelihoods are intensifying. Those disruptions, which have also limited access to health facilities and other public goods, are creating an unfolding humanitarian emergency.

The Horn of Africa continues to face severe food insecurity, reduced livelihoods, and hunger-related deaths as a result of several years of drought and failed harvests, according to FEWS Net. The hardest hit regions include Somalia, Sudan, the arid and semi-arid regions of Kenya, and southern and southeastern Ethiopia. The situation has been further exacerbated in Sudan and Ethiopia by ongoing conflict.