Last week SIDA held a special online briefing in collaboration with the Disasters Emergency Committee, where Cabinet Secretary Angus Robertson MSP announced an additional £400,000 funding will be made available to four SIDA members (Islamic Relief, Tearfund, Christian Aid and Oxfam) through the Humanitarian Emergencies Fund (HEF), to support their ongoing work responding to the crisis in Sudan and neighbouring countries.
Despite the lack of media coverage, the scope of the crisis in Sudan is staggering. An estimated 25 million people are acutely short of food as the civil war there continues after almost two years. Famine, disease outbreaks and worsening climate related weather conditions are making life even more difficult for the most vulnerable people – women, children, the elderly and disabled.
Scotland-based charities, funded by the Scottish Government, have been in the region since the escalation of violence in 2023, doing what they can to help both in Sudan itself and the neighbouring countries of Chad, Ethiopia and South Sudan, where millions have fled to. During the event, we heard from representatives of Islamic Relief, Christian Aid and Tearfund, three of the four recipients of the HEF funding, about their ongoing work in the region.
James Wani, Country Director for South Sudan at Christian Aid, highlighted the work they are currently doing to support those who have fled to South Sudan, where over a million refugees are now living in temporary accommodation. He noted that Christian Aid have been working in South Sudan since the 1970s; as a region impacted by seasonal drought, floods, food insecurity and lack of access to education, there was already a need for humanitarian assistance in South Sudan prior to the outbreak of war and subsequent influx of refugees from Sudan.
Seid Zebe, Tearfund‘s Country Director for Chad, spoke to the challenges faced by neighbouring countries who were already struggling prior to the arrival of the refugees, and reiterated his thanks on behalf of the beneficiaries of this funding, which has “given hope to people who have lost everything”.
Tufail Hussain, Director of Islamic Relief UK put the crisis into context: an estimated 9 million people, equivalent to the entire population of Scotland and Ireland, are currently internally displaced within Sudan. Tufail shared some details of his visit to Port Sudan and Qadarif in October last year, describing the harrowing conditions and traumatic events those fleeing the conflict have been enduring.
This aid will be partly delivered directly to those in need in the form of emergency cash assistance, as well as through the funding of existing programs. The additional £400,000 in funding to address the crisis in Sudan and neighbouring countries contributes to a total of £1.275M made available since 2023 through the HEF. In his announcement, Angus Robertson MSP said:
“Scotland may be a small nation, but our voice is strong and our actions matter. We will continue to stand in solidarity with the people of Sudan and all those facing disasters, disease and conflict worldwide. We will continue to support the humanitarian community and call for a world where no crisis is ignored and no life is left behind. We will not let Sudan become another forgotten humanitarian crisis.”
The full event recording is now available to watch online.