Two years of war in Sudan has created the world’s worst hunger crisis, with famine and mass hunger spreading across the country and humanitarian agencies racing against time to get aid to people before the rainy season begins next month.

International governments meeting at the London Conference on 15 April – which is being co-hosted by the UK, France and Germany and attended by around 20 Foreign Ministers – must agree urgent action to prevent famine spreading further, Islamic Relief says.

So far famine has been declared in at least five areas in Darfur and Kordofan in the west of the country, with 17 more locations at imminent risk of falling into famine in the coming weeks. But almost 25 million people – around half the entire population – are now facing acute food shortages all over the country, and global funding cuts to humanitarian aid are making the crisis even worse. Extreme violence against civilians, with hundreds of people killed in the last few weeks alone, has resulted in a humanitarian catastrophe.   

Islamic Relief aid workers across the country – from remote villages in Darfur in the west to overcrowded camps in eastern Sudan – have reported cases of extreme hunger, and displaced families have told us of people dying from lack of food. 

Hiba Mohammed Daba, 45, who fled to a camp in Gedaref in eastern Sudan after escaping attacks near her home in North Kordofan, told Islamic Relief she fears for her children’s lives:

“I know that at least five people have died of hunger in the camp. My life before the war was very sustainable and easy, but now here living conditions are bad. I survive on one meal a day of flour mixed with water and sugar. The nutrition value of the food is bad and it doesn’t provide what’s needed for my children. I give them a lot of the food but it’s not enough for them. They get ill more and are getting lighter and weaker. I’m lighter than I was and my dress doesn’t fit anymore. I think the situation will continue and I and my children will get weaker and weaker.”

Since the war erupted in April 2023, Islamic Relief has provided over 1.2 million people with food and other lifesaving aid – but it’s not enough to meet the overwhelming needs.

Elsadig Elnour, Islamic Relief’s Country Director in Sudan, says:

“Two years of this terrible war have left millions of people all over the country struggling to find food. Farmers have been uprooted from their land, markets have been attacked, food trucks have been looted, and whole towns are under siege. We are treating more malnourished children than ever. Our staff are exhausted and are themselves displaced from their homes, but are delivering lifesaving aid wherever they can. But now global funding cuts are making the situation even worse at a time when aid needs to be urgently scaled up not reduced.”

Islamic Relief is calling on governments at the London Conference and beyond to increase funding for the response to help stop famine spreading, and to pressure warring parties to allow unimpeded access for humanitarian agencies to reach everyone in need.

Parties to the conflict have repeatedly obstructed humanitarian assistance to areas outside their control, through a range of armed violence, movement restrictions and bureaucratic impediments. Despite this, aid agencies can reach many areas but lack funds to scale up operations sufficiently. Nearly one third of the way through the year, the UN-led 2025 Humanitarian Response Plan has less than 10% of the funds it needs.

Local Sudanese response groups in particular need much more international support. Community networks are at the heart of the response to the crisis, setting up community kitchens in areas that international organisations cannot reach and providing shelter for displaced families. Islamic Relief is supporting several local groups, but many face regular attacks as well as funding shortages.

As well as the ongoing violence, the war has devastated the economy, with rampant inflation and rising unemployment decreasing the purchasing capacity of millions of Sudanese people. Many families are now unable to afford food even when it is available. Islamic Relief has been distributing cash to thousands of families affected by food shortages, to help them buy what they need on the local markets. 

Islamic Relief is also calling on governments at the London Conference to step up efforts to kickstart peace talks. The political process has largely stalled but is urgently needed to protect civilians from the ongoing attacks and ensure a lasting peace. Any peace process must involve Sudanese civil society in a meaningful way, especially women, youth and diverse ethnic groups. 

Download a new joint NGO report: Sudan crisis 2 years on: The unraveling of the world’s largest humanitarian disaster from the Sahel to the Red Sea