10-04-2025 | di COOPI

Sudan. The world's worst forgotten crisis

«When the war broke out, we had to endure great suffering just to get food and clean water. My family had to buy it from donkey-drawn carts, but it was very expensive and never enough: we only had a 20-liter can of water a day. When we ran out of money, we stopped washing ourselves and our clothes». This is what Abu Hassan, a resident of Tawilla in Sudan, had to say. At the beginning of the conflict, he was forced to flee his village with his wife and six children. «We left our homes, along with other families, and walked 61 kilometers on foot, with no water or food. After two days of suffering on the road, we reached El Fasher, where we found many displaced people in the Tombasi school, and decided to stay». Abu Hassan is one of the 125 million people that COOPI - Cooperazione Internazionale, has supported over six decades of work in 70 countries worldwide, through more than 3,000 projects and the involvement of 5,400 expatriate staff and 68,000 local workers.

Since the outbreak of war, on April 15, 2023, over 12 million people have been displaced in Sudan, nearly 4 million of whom have sought refuge across borders in countries like Egypt, Chad, and South Sudan, which are already facing significant humanitarian pressures. Almost a third of the Sudanese population is displaced and half of them are children. To make matters worse, there is the food crisis, which affects 24 million people, and a water emergency, which forces 270,000 people, including 130,000 children, to struggle to access clean water. Basic services have also been compromised: in the areas hardest hit by the conflict, only 25% of healthcare facilities are still operational, while the lack of water and poor hygiene conditions are fueling the spread of diseases like cholera, dengue, and malaria. «In Sudan, we are facing one of the most severe humanitarian emergencies of our time. - emphasizes Ennio Miccoli, Director of COOPI Cooperazione Internazionale, a humanitarian organization that has been active in the country for over twenty years. – Despite this, in a global context marked by high-intensity conflicts, the Sudanese crisis has remained largely overlooked by the international community, even though its impacts are devastating on both a national and regional scale.»

In two years, the conflict has caused nearly 29,000 deaths, including 7,500 civilians, and has triggered a dramatic escalation of violence against minors, with a 480% increase in severe violations against children.

COOPI's intervention in Sudan

In 2024, COOPI’s field staff implemented 10 projects to support the population, reaching nearly 150,000 people across the North Darfur, Gedaref (home to the Tuneydba and Um Raquba refugee camps), Khartoum, the Northern and River Nile States. «We have been present in Sudan since 2004 and, over 21 years, we’ve carried out 119 projects, helping 4.2 million people. In this moment of crisis, we reorganized our operations in the country to respond more effectively to the ongoing emergency - explains Ennio Miccoli - we have focused primarily on ensuring access to clean water and distributing essential goods, such as water containers, kitchen utensils and materials to build temporary shelters, all of which are vital for survival in refugee camps».

In particular, in the Mellit district, where 50,000 displaced people are living and a famine is ongoing, COOPI launched the project "Early Integrated Response to the Food Crisis in North Darfur", with the aim of ensuring access to agricultural seeds and clean water. The organization also distributed goats to vulnerable families, especially those led by women among the internally displaced.

«Despite the challenges of accessing Mellit, a highly isolated area, COOPI, together with its local partners, has continued to provide humanitarian aid, reaching both the displaced people and the host communities, who have been severely affected by the conflict and famine». – emphasizes Miccoli.

COOPI, 60 years of commitment in invisible crisis

The situation in Sudan is just one of 50 active wars in 2024, a year that saw a 25% increase in violent incidents compared to the previous year, with over 240,000 victims, the highest number recorded since 2019. In the first three months of 2025, 50,000 people have already died due to wars and conflicts, and it is expected that the number of victims will continue to exceed 20,000 per month, while millions of people will live in dire emergency situations and be forced to flee their homes. «Currently, 305 million people worldwide need humanitarian aid, but their needs often go unheard, if not entirely unknown – emphasizes Ennio Miccoli – There are many areas of the world where violence and humanitarian crises remain in the shadows. Countries like Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Chad, the Central African Republic and Lebanon face daily devastation, famine, and humanitarian emergencies, with a devastating impact».

COOPI, celebrating its sixtieth anniversary this year, operates in 33 countries worldwide and implements more than 200 development and emergency projects. «For 60 years, COOPI has stood by populations affected by humanitarian crises, including the 'invisible ones' – emphasizes Ennio Miccoli, Director of the humanitarian organization – Our pragmatic approach allows the organization to support and work closely with people, being present in these countries, sometimes for decades. Our goal is to guide communities toward sustainable development paths: even when these are disrupted by sudden crises, COOPI remains by their side, as we do in the Central African Republic, where we’ve been present for 51 years, or in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where we’ve been operating since 1977. Carrying out so many projects in so many countries is significant for this reason: to generate, project by project, a positive impact that grows with each one, benefiting more and more people and communities».