UNITED NATIONS: Rhino – The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) expressed shock at the situation of children he met in Sudan. He said Sudanese are suffering from a whole host of crises, including continued conflict, the world’s largest displacement crisis, and a famine that has hit some areas.
At a press conference in Port Sudan at the end of his visit to the country, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus noted that 25.6 million people in Sudan – more than half of the population – are expected to face high levels of acute food insecurity.
Yesterday, Dr. Tedros visited a WHO-supported pediatric health facility in Port Sudan, which provides life-saving care for severely malnourished infants. He said he was shocked by the condition of the many emaciated young children and the harrowing testimonies of their mothers who have been displaced several times due to insecurity and are now grateful “to have found refuge in this clinic.”
In his press conference, Dr. Tedros warned of outbreaks of diseases such as cholera, malaria, dengue fever and measles with the risk of monkeypox.
He pointed to numerous reports of conflict-related sexual violence and the near total collapse of the health system with 70-80% of health facilities across Sudan not fully functioning.
A forgotten crisis:
The senior UN official said: “The international community seems to have forgotten Sudan and is no longer paying much attention to the conflict that is tearing it apart and its consequences for the region. “That is why I came to Sudan.
The war, which erupted in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, has killed more than 20,000 people and displaced more than 10 million.
The WHO director-general warned of the scale of the crisis and the inadequate action to address the conflict and respond to the suffering it is causing. He said this is exemplified by inadequate levels of funding, the high number of attacks on healthcare facilities – more than 100 – attacks on other aid workers and civilians, and the inability to secure unimpeded humanitarian access across borders and across the frontlines of the conflict.
A call to wake up and support Sudan:
Dr. Tedros called on the world to “wake up and help Sudan get out of the nightmare it is going through.” He outlined a number of demands, the first of which is an immediate ceasefire that leads to a permanent political solution, saying that “peace is the best medicine.”
He also called for the protection of health facilities, medical workers and patients, sustainable access to supplies and aid, expanded disease detection, and increased immunization coverage against cholera, polio, measles and other diseases in affected areas. He called for a massive increase in funding from the international community to boost the response.
This will save millions, mostly women and children, living on the brink of survival, and provide much-needed and deserved calm for all people, he said. He emphasized that the people of Sudan must not be let down.