A Generation Lost: Sudan’s Children Pay The Price Of Three Years Of Conflict – World Vision

• The conflict in Sudan enters its fourth year with more than 17 million children in desperate need as famine-like conditions grip the nation
• Malnutrition is rife and nearly one million children are at risk of death
• More than 10 million children have not set foot in a classroom in three years

Sudan is facing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises following three years of relentless violence in which children are paying the most devastating cost.

World Vision New Zealand warns that without urgent international funding and immediate political action to end the conflict, an entire generation of children could be lost.

Famine-like conditions have been confirmed across multiple regions, driving more than four million children into acute malnutrition. Among them, more than 800,000 are so severely wasted that without specialised treatment, they may not survive.

World Vision New Zealand Country Programme Manager, Sarah Whittaker, says the world is failing Sudan’s children and must act now.

“New Zealanders have a proud tradition of showing up for the world’s most vulnerable people, and Sudan’s children need that now more than ever.

“This crisis is not winding down, in fact it is accelerating. Every week that passes without adequate action means more children exposed to horrific violence, more children dying of preventable hunger, more girls exposed to violence, and another generation denied an education.”

New Zealand contributed $5 million NZD to Sudan’s humanitarian response in the last financial year.

“New Zealand must urgently increase its humanitarian funding to Sudan to match the scale of the crisis,” Whittaker says.

“So many children are turning up at displacement camps alone, without parents, without protection and without support. Children have nothing and no one to rely on. Humanitarian aid is their only lifeline. Without it, children will not survive.”

In a single displacement camp in Fina in Sudan, more than 200 unaccompanied children have been identified, a heart-breaking snapshot of a crisis in which children continue to suffer in silence.

Today, two-thirds of Sudan’s population are in need of humanitarian support, including more than 17 million children. Children like 11-year-old Ibrahim who fled his hometown with his family after his home was shelled.

“The sky was black with smoke, and I saw people covered in blood,” Ibrahim recalls. “We ran until we could not breathe. I thought we would be safe here, but there is nothing but dust. I used to have books and a bed. Now we sleep on the ground in a makeshift shelter and I wait for food that never comes.”

World Vision teams are working round the clock in Sudan to deliver food, clean water, nutrition therapy, and child protection services, but the gap between need and available resources is growing at a catastrophic rate.

World Vision Sudan National Director, Simon Mane, says time is running out for an entire generation of children.

“The children of Sudan have shown incredible resilience, but resilience has its limits. They need the world to care about their survival and to step up and do more. Every hour of delay increases the risk of death for more children.”

World Vision is also calling on the New Zealand Government to urgently increase humanitarian funding and support international efforts toward a ceasefire.

New Zealanders can donate to World Vision’s Sudan Emergency Appeal atwww.WVNZ.org.nz/CHR or by calling 0800 800 776.

Notes:

World Vision in Sudan: World Vision has operated in Sudan for over 40 years and is currently delivering life-saving food, clean water, nutrition and child protection services to communities across the country. Sudan is now home to the world’s largest displacement crisis, with more than 13 million people forced from their homes.

About World Vision New Zealand: World Vision New Zealand is a Christian humanitarian organisation dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice. World Vision operates in nearly 100 countries worldwide.