For the second year in a row, Sudan is facing a deadly cholera outbreak. At least 28 people have died in the past month, and the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that 658 cases have been recorded since July 22 across five states. With health infrastructure in ruins and medical staff displaced by conflict, the situation is dire. A shocking 4.3% of cholera cases have ended in death, a much higher rate than usual.
Why It Matters
The cholera outbreak is just one of many crises Sudan faces. The ongoing 16-month war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has displaced over 10 million people, creating a massive humanitarian disaster. Those who have fled the fighting are packed into overcrowded camps, where poor sanitation and heavy rains have made cholera even more deadly.
Adding to the mounting problems, Sudan is grappling with four other concurrent disease outbreaks, including dengue fever and measles. The RSF’s advance has left many people cut off from aid, as the army restricts access and RSF soldiers loot supplies and hospitals. In Darfur’s Zamzam camp, conditions are so dire that international experts have declared a famine.
What They Are saying
The WHO’s country director, Shible Sahbani, warned that up to 200,000 people are at high risk of falling ill. “The challenge is getting supplies to the areas we need them,” Sahbani said, citing road closures due to the rainy season and security and bureaucratic obstacles.
To make matters worse, some of the worst-hit areas, like Kassala and Gedaref states, are home to 1.2 million displaced people living in squalid conditions. Footage from Gedaref shows stagnant water mixing with garbage, a perfect breeding ground for disease.
The international community is trying to help. On Friday, Sahbani announced that 455,000 cholera vaccine doses would be sent to Sudan, a small glimmer of hope amid the crisis. However, both he and Sudan’s Health Minister, Haitham Mohamed Ibrahim, stressed that the aid being provided is nowhere near enough to meet the enormous need. The U.N.’s humanitarian appeal for Sudan is still only about a third funded, leaving millions in desperate need of assistance.
Bottom Line
The army-aligned government has resorted to “unorthodox measures,” including air drops, to get vaccines and supplies into RSF-controlled areas and isolated army-held territories. But with both sides seemingly more interested in power than their people, it’s clear that Sudan’s suffering is far from over.
