Humanitarian aid to Sudan civilians stalled by floods and violence

The opening of the vital aid route on Friday was welcomed by officials, as it serves as a vital humanitarian route for delivering urgent aid to millions, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Reports indicate that 131 approved trucks will carry food and other relief items across the border, aiming to assist hundreds of thousands of people during and after the peak of the country’s rainy season. These supplies are expected to last through Sudan’s lean season in August and September.

Heavy rains and violence interrupt aid

Meanwhile, the World Food Programme (WFP) reported on Monday that 50 of its trucks, carrying nearly 5,000 tons of food and nutrition assistance, have been stranded in various locations across Sudan due to flooding and impassable roads, preventing the delivery of aid.

The agency aimed to deliver aid to around half a million people via the Tine border, but heavy rainfall has prevented trucks on the Chadian side from crossing. Some trucks have been stranded for up to two weeks.

Active fighting and increased violence in different regions of the nation, including in the Sennar and Gedaref State and Khartoum, have further restricted WFP’s access to communities in the middle of conflict zones.

OCHA said a humanitarian ceasefire “is urgently required to massively expand humanitarian access.”

“Ultimately, an end to the conflict is the only sustainable solution. It is critical for the warring parties to leave the battlefield and show up at the negotiating table,” the agency continued.

WFP needs all border crossings in Sudan to open to ensure the urgent delivery of food and nutrition assistance.

Additional flood effects

Separately, OCHA has reported that heavy rains and flooding are driving up the humanitarian needs in Sudan as roughly 143,000 people in 12 of Sudan’s 18 states have been impacted.

The aid coordination office also documented 27,000 cases of displacement, which is likely an underreported figure as “some of the worst flooding is in hard-to-reach conflict hotspots: Khartoum, Gezira, Kordofan and Darfur.”

The floods have also heightened the risk of disease outbreaks, including cholera and typhoid which can be fatal for malnourished women and children.

OCHA reported hundreds of recent cholera cases in Sudan.

Additionally, a dozen states in Sudan are experiencing multiple disease outbreaks simultaneously while three-quarters of healthcare facilities in the most affected areas are no longer operational.