A new Islamic Relief study on the impact of the war in Sudan’s Darfur region shows how rising hunger, poverty and violence against women and children has become the daily reality.
Since the war erupted in April, 93% of people surveyed by Islamic Relief have lost income and struggle to get food and healthcare, and increasingly desperate families are turning to begging, child labour, marrying off their young daughters or getting into debt. The survey found that 92% of women survivors of sexual and gender-based violence are not getting support, while mental health needs have rocketed.
Islamic Relief’s study interviewed 384 households in 20 villages in Jabal Marra, a mountainous region which has seen a large influx of people fleeing fighting in other parts of Darfur. Around 1.6 million people in Darfur have been displaced within the region since the conflict began.
Elsadig Elnour, Islamic Relief’s Country Director in Sudan, says: “Our research paints a picture of immense suffering among the communities we interviewed. Families can’t access food or medicine, women and girls live in constant fear of attack, and communities are being trapped in poverty and debt. Years of progress on reducing maternal mortality and child malnutrition in Darfur are now at risk of being reversed due to the conflict and lack of humanitarian access. I don’t know how long people can survive like this.”
Almost nine out of ten people, 86% are struggling or not able to meet their basic needs, the research shows. The assessment finds the war has affected every aspect of people’s lives:
A rise in child labour and child marriage
The growing poverty and hunger are forcing more children into work or to beg in the streets of towns. One respondent told our assessment team, “We have no option but to send our son to beg in the local market for money and food. If we had any food or money, then I would not have sent him out there with all the insecurity and risks involved.” There has also been a rise in child marriage.
Women and girls at extremely high risk
Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) against women and girls has increased since the conflict erupted. 82% of women surveyed described fearing attack as they walk to collect firewood or fetch water.
Yet 83% of women and girls said they can’t access SGBV support services and 92% of those who need services are not getting any help. Islamic Relief runs a recovery centre for survivors of SGBV in Nertiti, a main town in central Darfur, but most other areas lack similar facilities.
As well as a rise in SGBV, respondents reported an increase in numerous other protection threats such as kidnappings, physical assaults and forced recruitment of young boys by armed groups, as well as children becoming separated from their parents as they flee the fighting.
Rising mental health needs
At one of the region’s main hospitals, the number of people seeking mental health support has increased by over 56% since the conflict broke out. 73% of respondents reported that people need mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) services, yet 81% said they don’t currently know where to access them.
Most people can’t access healthcare
Hospitals and clinics have come under attack during the conflict and many have closed or reduced services due to the insecurity and a lack of medicine and fuel. 84% of people surveyed said that they or their family had experienced problems accessing healthcare services since the conflict began.
Most people (65%) said they don’t have money to buy medicine and have to take loans or sell assets to meet the cost; while more than half (57%) said that fear of attack prevents them going to health facilities. Women in particular said that the risk of attack on the journey has forced them to decide not to attend hospitals and antenatal clinics. 32% of people said their main clinic is no longer open.
Many people fear that the ongoing conflict will undo years of progress on health in central Darfur. Respondents praised the dedication of local health workers who are trying to keep services going, especially midwives, and noted that there has been a significant reduction in maternal deaths and child malnutrition in recent years. But in the current situation this risks being reversed.
Widespread immunisation campaigns have been carried out against polio and other diseases, but now the disruption to trucking and fuel supplies due to the conflict has disrupted the cold chain storage, leading to many vaccines going to waste.
As income falls, people are selling any assets they can and going into debt
93% of people interviewed said their income has significantly reduced and 86% of people are now struggling to meet their basic needs – compared to 67% before the crisis began in April. 91% are not currently employed or earning a salary, as even many people who still technically have jobs with government or humanitarian agencies have not received salaries as the conflict has disrupted the banking system.
Two thirds (67%) of households said they have sold at least one asset since the war broke out, while 72% report they will have to sell whatever remaining assets they have if the crisis continues.
84% of people said they have taken a loan since the war began, while 68% report taking multiple loans. People are taking loans in order to buy food, medicine or take transport to safe areas. Increasing numbers of families are taking food on credit to pay back later at higher rate, to avoid going hungry.
The percentage of people involved in agricultural livelihoods has dropped from 84% before the crisis to 52% now, while the proportion of people relying on charity has risen from 45% to 77%.
People are eating much less
As food becomes increasingly scarce and expensive, many families said they have reduced the frequency and quantity of meals and are now eating just one meal of boiled sorghum a day. Just one in five households (21%) said they have any food stocks left and 33% reported there was no food available in their nearby markets even if they could afford it. Although last year’s harvest in the region was fairly good, many food stocks have since been looted and destroyed during the fighting.
Farmers struggled to plant this year – due to the insecurity, displacement and lack of seeds – and 42% of respondents reported they expect a huge reduction in their food yield during the November-December harvest.
Central and West Jabal Marra are a breadbasket region that usually produces a range of crops including millet, sorghum, groundnuts, onions, potatoes, apples, mangoes, guavas and oranges. But now there is much less food available in local markets as trucks transporting goods have reduced by over 75% due to the risk of hijackings and rising costs of fuel. Many traders have had to shut or relocate stores due to the threat of looting by armed groups. When it is available, the price of food has doubled or tripled.
Challenges accessing clean water
Two thirds (66%) of respondents said they have to use unclean water sources as they have no access to clean drinking water. The already limited water sources are under extreme pressure due to the arrival of so many displaced people, and people now have to travel further to get water – further increasing the risks of attacks on the way. 82% of women and girls said the location of their main water point is not safe. Out of 20 key water points assessed, 12 (60%) had been the scene of conflict between communities or individuals over access to water. The rising cost of fuel has resulted in a 300-400% increase in the cost of operating water systems and water trucks. The majority of households (78 to 83%) have people who’ve suffered water contamination related diseases in the last year.
The overwhelming majority of the households, 96% reported lack of peace and the conflict as their main concern.
Jacob Opwapo, Business Development Manager at Islamic Relief Sudan, who was heavily involved in the report said, “This report gives us tangible statistics to illuminate what we already likely knew overall, that there is a lot of suffering in Darfur amid the ongoing civil war. The pain there is on a level which is difficult to imagine.”
Elsadig Elnour, Islamic Relief’s Country Director in Sudan, says: “It is clear that people in Darfur need much more support to cope with the impact of the conflict. This has come on the back of other challenges for the region like the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The overwhelming majority of households we interviewed – 96% – said that the conflict and lack of peace is their main concern right now.
“It’s vital that the international community steps up aid to Darfur including greater support to farmers and investing more in protection services, especially for women and girls affected by gender-based violence and to address the growing mental health impacts. All parties to the conflict must do much more to protect civilians and ensure humanitarian workers can safely access people in need.”
Notes
Islamic Relief has worked in Sudan since 1984. In Darfur and the Jabal Marra region we provide health and nutrition services including managing 10 primary healthcare centres, supporting a major rural hospital, running a support centre for survivors of SGBV, and distributing food and nutritional support for children at risk of malnutrition.
