Sudan – a wake-up call

It’s the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. It should be headline news, but it’s not. Sudan’s hunger crisis is a test of international resolve and yet the media remains largely silent, writes Jean-Michel Grand from Action Against Hunger UK.

Today marks two years since armed conflict erupted in Sudan, quietly spiralling into the world’s largest displacement and hunger crises. Over 8 million people are internally displaced, with another 4 million forced to flee across borders. 

Nearly 26 million face acute food insecurity, and famine has been declared in five areas, with conditions rapidly spreading. 

In August 2024, the Famine Review Committee (FRC) of the IPC system confirmed that Zamzam camp in North Darfur had met the technical threshold for famine – the first formal famine declaration in over seven years, and one endorsed by UN agencies. 

More than 3.2 million children under five are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition in 2025. Yet global attention remains limited, despite more than 30 million people now requiring humanitarian assistance. 

A crisis of this magnitude should command global attention

Yet Sudan remains startlingly underreported and critically under-resourced. There has been powerful journalism. Anthony Loyd’s three-part series in The Times lays bare the conflict’s devastating toll. Channel 4’s Unreported World exposed the scale of hunger and the near-total absence of aid. But these are exceptions, not the rule. The broader conversation remains near silent.

Conflict, targeted destruction, and economic collapse have gutted basic services with less than 25% of health facilities still operational. Humanitarian access is severely restricted, and, despite being the world’s largest displacement and hunger crisis, 

Sudan has fallen into a media blind spot where coverage remains scarce. Part of this is logistical, with journalists facing extreme danger and limited access, while much of the country is under a communications blackout.

Nyibol Mathiang Deng, 27, is six months pregnant and arrived at the border with her youngest daughter.

The complexity of the war defies simple headlines

Unlike Ukraine and Gaza, Sudan lacks geopolitical allies or clear-cut narratives to attract public attention. With a peaceful resolution to the conflict nowhere in sight, the complexity of the war defies simple headlines. 

In an era of news cycles driven by immediacy and spectacle, it has become a crisis that is too complex to ‘trend’, too distant, for sustained coverage. In turn, limited coverage and public awareness translates into scarce funding and weak political action. 

Conflict and hunger are two sides of the same coin

Wherever conflict erupts, hunger follows. Fields that were once bountiful with crops are now dissolute, markets collapse, and aid convoys are blocked. Food has been weaponised, where starvation is used to punish civilian populations or to force surrender.

Emergency food and humanitarian aid is vital, but it cannot substitute a long-term strategy. Donors must prioritise area-based interventions, cash assistance, support for local markets and investment in climate-resilient agriculture. 

These aren’t luxuries, they are the bare minimum. Yet even these basics are increasingly out of reach. Deep cuts to international humanitarian aid from the US, UK and other major donors are already curtailing operations on the ground, just as needs are getting excessively worse. 

There is an urgent need for humanitarian diplomacy

Even the best programmes will fail if diplomacy and international will does not catch up. Humanitarian diplomacy must return to the forefront and governments and multilateral institutions should apply pressure on all parties of the conflict and demand unfettered humanitarian access and real commitments to prevent further collapse. 

Sudan’s hunger crisis is a test of international resolve and yet the media remains largely silent, with Sudan continuously absent from the headlines despite the large scale of the crisis. 

From left to right, Atok, 9, Ackuon,12, Arek Luach Nhial, 15, ( yellow scarf ) and grandfather Kerbino Agany Athien, 60, at the South Sudan border, awaiting screening and emergency food rations from Action Against Hunger.

We need immediate and unimpeded humanitarian access

Aid workers must be protected, and civilians spared. The international community must hold all parties to account and put an end to the needless suffering of millions. 

Governments, including the UK, must recommit to dedicated humanitarian aid and take a stronger diplomatic role in pushing for a ceasefire, safe access corridors, and long-term political solutions. 

We have the tools to save lives, but what we are missing is urgency. 

Without it, millions will continue to starve. 

The upcoming Ministerial meeting is a critical chance to push for a ceasefire and boost urgent, flexible funding. We urge the UK to ensure support reaches local responders at the heart of the crisis. 

For the media, we urge news editors, foreign desks and journalists to not look away. Sudan deserves that same sustained coverage we’ve seen in other crises.  

The reality of life for millions of Sudanese 

44-year-old famer, I, from North Kardofan led a stable life with his family of 18 members, but the conflict forced them to flee repeatedly. 

“Arriving in Goz Alsalam, marked the beginning of our most vulnerable state. We lost everything – our belongings, our dignity – and we never imagined that we would reach such a critical point, witnessing the death of 30 children and 8 elderly people from hunger and the outbreak of disease.”

With the support of Action Against Hunger, which included dignity and hygiene kits, I and his family found relief from their suffering and renewed hope.

There are more stories like I’s, and it reflects the reality of millions of Sudanese who face the horrors of war on a daily basis. Action Against Hunger and many of the aid organisations working within Sudan are asking for one thing, and that is to bring attention to one of the most underreported humanitarian crises of our time. 

The world can’t look away from Sudan — lives depend on it.

Sudan Crisis Appeal: Donate to help 

Jean-Michel Grand is Executive Director of Action Against Hunger UK