Rhino: Agencies – The European Union (EU) said it, Britain and other countries plan to organize a high-level conference on the Sudan crisis in London in mid-April. The underfunding of the humanitarian response plan, which aims to raise $4.2 billion to help 20.9 million of the most vulnerable Sudanese, raises fears that humanitarian action will collapse as the hunger crisis deepens.
‘The European Union, the UK, France and Germany are hosting a high-level conference on the Sudan crisis,’ the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations Directorate-General said in a statement. The conference will be held in the British capital, London, on 15 April.
On 13 March, the EU hosted the third meeting of senior humanitarian officials on Sudan, in which donors, UN agencies, the Red Cross, international NGOs and local response teams participated.
The meeting explored the possibility of holding a diplomatic humanitarian forum to propose initial steps on scaling up the humanitarian response with the parties to the conflict.
The proposed forum aims to seek safe corridors for humanitarian workers, supplies and civilians across contact lines or frontlines, protect infrastructure, remove bureaucratic obstacles, and obtain commitments to provide protection services, she said.
Participants emphasized their collective commitment to meeting the humanitarian needs of Sudanese, and urged parties to the conflict to protect civilians, civilian infrastructure and medical facilities, not to block relief access to those in need, and to prohibit sexual and gender-based violence.
