Famine Declared in Sudan’s Darfur Region Amid Ongoing Civil War

A dire humanitarian crisis has reached a critical point in Sudan, as famine has officially been declared in a city located in the beleaguered Darfur region. This declaration comes amidst a devastating 15-month-long civil conflict that has left countless individuals struggling for survival. Two prominent organizations that specialize in monitoring global hunger announced the declaration on Thursday.

Many individuals have sought refuge in a camp known as Zamzam, situated near the city of El Fasher in North Darfur state. Since June, those in the camp have been grappling with severe food shortages, exacerbated by a complete halt to food aid reaching this vulnerable population. The Zamzam camp has witnessed a significant influx of displaced persons, now accommodating nearly half a million people. An official famine declaration is a rare occurrence, aimed at galvanizing a response from donor governments and humanitarian organizations.

The ongoing conflict between rival military factions has drastically transformed Sudan, a nation once regarded as a potential global breadbasket, into a landscape marked by deepening hunger and escalating humanitarian crises.

In addition to the Zamzam camp, two other camps within El Fasher—Abu Shouk and Al Salam—are likely experiencing similar famine conditions. However, due to limited evidence, confirming the extent of the crisis in these locations remains challenging. These assessments are provided by the Famine Early Warning Systems Network, a research group funded by the U.S. government, in conjunction with the Famine Review Committee, an independent body of experts.

Experts utilize stringent methodologies to classify famine. A famine is officially declared when the following conditions are met:

• 20% of households, or one in five individuals in an area, face an extreme lack of food.
• 30% of children are suffering from acute malnutrition.
• Two adults or four children per 10,000 people are dying each day as a result of malnutrition or starvation.

According to the organizations, the famine in these camps, which collectively shelter between 400,000 and 600,000 people, is expected to persist at least through October.

This declaration marks the first official famine in Africa since South Sudan’s in 2020. While the group of experts had projected famine conditions in Somalia in 2022 and Gaza earlier this year, they did not formally declare those situations as famines.

The Darfur region of Sudan has been marred by intense conflict and atrocities since the civil war erupted between the national army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces on April 15 of last year. The situation in El Fasher has deteriorated sharply since April of this year, when the paramilitary group laid siege to the city, escalating attacks on surrounding villages. Consequently, many civilians have been trapped, health care facilities have been destroyed, and communities have been left without access to food or clean water.

The conflict has also severely damaged agricultural lands, restricting food availability in local markets and complicating humanitarian aid access. Currently, Sudan is grappling with the world’s most significant hunger crisis, as reported by the World Food Program. More than half of the nation’s 48 million people are facing crisis levels of hunger, according to the U.N. agency. Additionally, Sudan is enduring the world’s worst displacement crisis, with over 10 million people internally displaced or forced to flee to neighboring countries.