Humanitarian impact of the Sudanese civil war (2023–present)

The Sudanese civil war that began in April 2023 has produced a severe humanitarian crisis. The conflict is fought between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Ten days into the fighting, communities faced severe shortages of food, water, medical supplies and fuel, with Khartoum and its surroundings hit hardest. Within the first months of the war, about 25 million people out of a population of roughly 50 million required humanitarian assistance. The World Food Programme struggled to deliver aid as large quantities were looted. By September 2024, roughly 80% of healthcare facilities in Sudan were no longer functional. The conflict has caused nearly 12 million people to be forcibly displaced, both inside Sudan and across its borders, making it one of the largest displacement crises in recent history. In April 2025, the famine in Sudan had severely affected nearly 25 million people, and almost 4 million children under five were acutely malnourished. By September 2025, the number of people requiring humanitarian aid had increased to 30.4 million. The fatality numbers are highly uncertain, with some assessments suggesting the true number may exceed 150,000.

International aid agencies have expressed concerns about the scale and severity of the crisis in Sudan. In August 2024, Médecins Sans Frontières said that "international humanitarian organizations and donors" had failed to address "the country's escalating medical needs, from catastrophic child malnutrition to widespread disease outbreaks." According to a UN representative, the conflict has pushed Sudan into the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. Observers called for an increase of humanitarian aid, the enforcement of international law to protect humanitarian workers, the establishment of clear pathways for refugees to seek safety, as well as halting the delivery of weapons to the RSF by the United Arab Emirates. By January 2026, it was estimated that 70% of the population was urgently in need of assistance.