human rights organizations calls for AU Peace and Security Council and the UN to continue
their collective efforts to address the humanitarian crisis in Sudan
Sudan is the scene of the greatest and complex human rights and humanitarian crisis in the world characterised by the United Nations’ Secretary-General as “… a crisis of staggering scale and brutality.” The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) estimates that up to 30.4 million Sudanese or over 63% of the population in addition to about 5 million forced to leave the country into exile are in need of humanitarian assistance to meet their immediate basic needs in 2025. The UN plans to provide at least 21 million Sudanese victims of the armed conflict with urgent life-saving relief material and protection, including food, medical supplies, potable water and sanitation, shelter and psychosocial service etc. It is a matter of grave concern that the humanitarian needs in Sudan are multiplying and the overall funding for the relief efforts in this year is expected to exceed US$10 billion at a time of shrinking donor sources. Saving civilian lives and alleviating human suffering in dignity as well as sparing the donor community scarce funding of massive and exorbitant humanitarian operations in Sudan, require a well-coordinated strategy that involves national, regional and international actors, notably the UN’s Security Council and the African Union’s Peace and Security Council. We note with keen interest the announcement of the Sudan Peace Call, an initiative launched by former Transitional Prime Minister Dr. Abdalla Hamdok on 4 March 2025, and we believe it is a practical and workable roadmap for a comprehensive solution to the crisis in Sudan. This timely initiative is the most foresighted, people-centred and altruistic option to break the political stalemate and reenergize the peace process, therefore, it represents an opportunity to be seized by all peace partners. We fully support the call of Dr. Hamdok for a joint meeting of the UN Security Council and the AU Peace and Security Council to be convened urgently with the participation of Sudan’s Army Chief, the RSF Commander and the leaders of the Sudan People Liberation Movement/Army-North Abdelaziz Al-Hilo and the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army Mr. Abdelwahid M. A. Al-Nour as well as the representatives of the Sudanese pro-democracy civilian groups with a view to reaching a humanitarian truce and an immediate and unconditional ceasefire. It is our belief that such a joint meeting will send a decisive signal about the resolve of Africa and the world community to avoid a deadly famine that threatens the lives of millions of Sudanese, end the war and prevent the commission of atrocity crimes and potential genocide. The expected actionoriented measures to be agreed upon in such a meeting could be the difference between life and death to millions of vulnerable Sudanese by silencing the guns and laying down the foundation for sustainable peace. We call on members of the AU Peace and Security Council and the UN Security Council to continue their collective efforts to address the humanitarian crisis in Sudan and to spare the loss of countless civilian lives to preventable death due to hunger and man-made famine or because of direct military attacks and forcible displacement. The suffering is unbearable, and the overall situation is so dire and so acute that urgent intervention is required to protect civilians and to bring the belligerents and Sudanese stakeholders concerned to the negotiation table. —–Ends—– Signed: 1. African Centre for Democracy and Human Rights Studies, Banjul 2. African Organization for Rights and Development, Kampala 3. Afrika Jom Centre, Senegal 4. Canabi Congress, Sudan 5. Centre du Commerce International pour le Développement, Conakry 6. Darfur Victims Support Organization, Kampala 7. Democratic Monitor for Transparency and Rights, Kampala 8. Femmes Africa Solidarité, Dakar, Senegal 9. Human Rights Institute of South Africa, Johannesburg 10.Independent Commission for Human Rights in Norh Africa, Morocco 11.Interfaith International, Geneva 12.Nubian Center for Peace and Democracy, Kampala 13.Rencontre Africaine pour la Défense des Droits de l’Homme, Dakar/Geneva 14.Réseau de Formation et de Recherche sur les Migrations Africaines, Switzerland 15.Sudan Knowledge Centre, Switzerland 16.Sudanese Refugees Advocacy Group, Australia 17.Sudanese Women Union, Khartoum/Nairobi 18.Ubuntu Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies, Kampala
