Three Years of Conflict in Sudan: the devastating impact on children

For more than three years, children and families across Sudan have endured relentless conflict. What was already a fragile situation has spiralled into the world’s largest humanitarian and displacement crisis – one that continues to deepen every day.  

Since April 2023, the scale of need has more than doubled. Millions have been forced to flee their homes, often repeatedly, in search of safety. Some families reach camps for internally displaced people only to be driven away again by attacks. Others have crossed borders into neighbouring countries such as Chad, Ethiopia and Egypt, carrying little more than what they can hold, and the uncertainty of what comes next.  

The toll on children has been profound. Childhoods are disrupted, rights denied and daily life has become a struggle for survival. Access to essentials like safe water and healthcare is increasingly out of reach, while hunger, preventable disease, violence and missed schooling are part of everyday reality. 

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Three-years of relentless conflict

Fighting severe malnutrition in Sudan 

Across Sudan, children are facing a devastating hunger crisis – especially in parts of Darfur and Kordofan where communities have been cut off from the lifesaving nutrition and supplies they urgently need.  

More than 21.2 million people are struggling to find enough food, as malnutrition deepens in areas cut off by intense fighting. For children, the consequences are stark. In 2026, an estimated 4.2 million children are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition, including more than 825,000 with severe acute malnutrition – a 13.5 per cent increase from 2025.  

In western Sudan, displaced families are accessing critical healthcare and nutrition services at UNICEF-supported health facilities. 

Among them is Gisma, a mother forced to flee her home as conflict intensified in northern Sudan. When she arrived at the clinic seeking treatment for her baby boy, he was diagnosed with severe malnutrition. 

Like many mothers affected by the crisis, Gisma was not getting enough to eat herself. Without adequate nutrition, her body could not produce the breast milk her baby needed. 

“My husband doesn’t have a job, and it’s hard to provide enough food. My milk has reduced a lot, and I'm not breastfeeding regularly,” she says. 

After four visits to the UNICEF-supported health centre, her baby began to regain strength. 

“We come here every week for his screening, and to receive food and milk.”  

For Fadeela, a nutritionist and mother of five who works at the clinic, it is stories like Gisma’s that motivate her to walk the 45 minutes each day to her job. 

In 2025, UNICEF reached millions of children across Sudan, screening 6.8 million children for acute malnutrition, treating more than 600,000 children with severe acute malnutrition, and supporting 2.1 million mothers and caregivers with critical feeding assistance.  

Yet the scale of need remains immense. In 2026, UNICEF aims to reach a further 5.6 million children by equipping health facilities with critical nutrition supplies, including ready-to-use therapeutic food, which helps malnourished children survive and recover.  

Accessing safe drinking water 

In many of the hardest hit areas, families are forced to rely on unsafe water sources and have little or no access to basic sanitation, dramatically increasing the risk of waterborne diseases, such as diarrhea and cholera. Without safe water and sanitation, children become caught in a vicious cycle of infection and malnutrition, heightening their risk of serious illness and death. 

Throughout 2025, UNICEF and partners significantly scaled up water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services, ensuring 14.7 million people gained access to safe drinking water. 

Protecting children against life-threatening, preventable diseases 

As conflict and displacement continue, many families now live in overcrowded camps and have missed routine immunisations. Disease spreads quickly in these conditions, placing babies and young children at heightened risk of life-threatening, but preventable, diseases.  

Across Sudan, outbreaks of measles, dengue, hepatitis E and malaria have surged. The situation is particularly critical in Darfur states, where insecurity and limited access to health services make it even harder for families to get the care they need. 

Amina, a midwife whose own family has been displaced by the conflict, is now supporting mothers and newborn babies at a UNICEF-supported health centre. She describes the conditions many families arrive in: 

Despite immense challenges, Amina and her team continue to deliver essential care and lifesaving immunisations, helping protect mothers and children from preventable diseases.

In 2025, UNICEF supported 1,400 health facilities across Sudan, helping more than 4.5 million children and women access primary healthcare services and vaccinating 1.3 million children against measles. 

A child’s right to learn, under threat 

At least 8 million school-aged children are out of school. Many schools have been damaged or destroyed by the conflict, while around half of all school buildings are now being used as shelters. The longer children are out of school, the greater the risks of exploitation, such as child labour, child recruitment into armed groups, and early marriage – especially for girls.  

To help children continue their education, UNICEF is working with partners to establish safe learning spaces, even amid ongoing violence and disruption. In western Sudan, Latifa, who volunteers at a UNICEF-supported safe learning space, explains why these spaces matter so much.

“This space means safety, care, and love for displaced children. They have seen so much at such a young age,” she says. 

Even a few hours in a safe learning environment can make a profound difference. Children begin to laugh, play, and reconnect with their childhood.  

Last year, UNICEF and partners helped more than 3.2 million children access safe learning spaces across Sudan and distributed teaching materials to 1.6 million children. 

Continuing to reach every child in need 

UNICEF remains on the ground across Sudan, delivering lifesaving support for children and families in conflict-affected areas, displacement camps and communities under immense strain. In the hardest hit areas, where essential services have collapsed, UNICEF and partners are focussed on urgent interventions, including healthcare, clean water, child protection and education support.  

This work is only possible because of the generosity of supporters like you. With your help, we can reach even more children across Sudan.