UN agencies call for confronting the crisis in Sudan news

Officials from UN agencies and bodies called on the international community to take urgent action to confront the worsening crisis in Sudan, warning of the increasing suffering and risks threatening the lives of millions of people.

In a joint statement, 4 officials representing the International Organization for Migration, the High Commissioner for Refugees, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the World Food Program affirmed their commitment to continuing to provide life-saving assistance and provide protection to children and families in various parts of Sudan.

Officials stressed that the humanitarian community is ready to respond, but cannot act alone, calling for immediate international support to meet the growing needs.

This call came at the conclusion of a field visit conducted by officials to Sudan, during which they were informed of the extent of the devastation caused by the conflict in several regions, including Darfur, Khartoum, and other regions affected by the conflict.

Sudan is facing one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, with more than 30 million people in need of humanitarian assistance, including more than 9.6 million internally displaced people and about 15 million children.

The crisis in Sudan is not over, but global interest in it is fading.

Every minute, families are forced to flee their homes, facing unspeakable suffering.

We cannot allow Sudan to become a forgotten crisis. We must pay attention to it and take the necessary measures to help the people of Sudan. pic.twitter.com/1YayHHJGgm

– UNHCR (@UNHCR_Arabic) October 22, 2025

Since the beginning of 2025, more than one million people have returned to the capital, Khartoum alone, out of about 2.6 million people who returned to their homes after the intensity of fighting decreased in some areas.

In this context, Oguchi Daniels, Deputy Director-General for Operations at the International Organization for Migration, said after her visit to Sudan that the scale of the return to Khartoum reflects the resilience of the population, but at the same time it represents a worrying indicator.

Daniels pointed out that the country is witnessing the spread of diseases such as cholera, dengue fever and malaria, which makes investing in clean water, health care and basic services an urgent matter to enable the population to start a new life.

Aid obstacles

In addition, severe restrictions continue to hinder the delivery of aid to the most affected groups, in light of the continuing insecurity, obstacles and challenges that hinder the delivery of humanitarian aid.

For her part, Kelly Clements, Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees, described the Sudanese crisis as “one of the worst protection crises we have witnessed in decades,” following her visit to displacement sites in Port Sudan and the surroundings of Khartoum.

She pointed out that millions of people have been displaced inside and outside the country, while returning families suffer from a severe lack of support amid the absence of alternatives.

She added, “I spoke with families who recently fled from El Fasher, and they told horrific stories about having to leave everything behind and take dangerous roads,” stressing that “support is needed everywhere.”

The lack of funding exacerbates the crisis, as only 25% of the total funding required for the Sudan Humanitarian Response Plan for 2025, amounting to $4.2 billion, has been collected, threatening the continuity of humanitarian operations.

Despite the challenges, the humanitarian response this year reached more than 13.5 million people, including people in the most affected areas such as Darfur, Kordofan and Khartoum, but without additional resources, humanitarian agencies may be forced to reduce their interventions, putting the lives of millions at risk.

Since April 15, 2023, the army and the Rapid Support Forces have been fighting a war that many regional and international mediations have not succeeded in ending, amid the suffering of civilians.

About 20,000 people were killed in the conflict and more than 15 million were displaced, both displaced and refugees, according to international and local reports, while a study prepared by American universities estimated the death toll at about 130,000 people.