Sudan orders universities to return to original campuses by August or lose intake rights
June 3, Khartoum — Sudan’s Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research has ordered all universities and higher education institutions to return to their original licensed premises by 1 August 2026, threatening to bar non-compliant institutions from accepting students in the 2026–2027 academic intake.
Minister of Higher Education Ahmed Madawi Musa issued Decision No. 83 of 2026 on Wednesday, directing all higher education and scientific research institutions — whether operating outside Sudan or in displacement areas within the country — to resume full academic and administrative activities from their original approved locations.
The decision also requires the immediate cessation of all alternative or temporary centres and off-campus locations by the August deadline, and is grounded in the Higher Education and Scientific Research Regulation Act of 2021, specifically Articles 7(1)(l) and 9(e, g). It comes in implementation of directives from the Prime Minister aimed at restoring academic and administrative activity to approved sites.
Following the outbreak of war in April 2023, many Sudanese universities had resumed academic activities by opening alternative centres in stable states or through online learning and external sites. The ministry said the order is part of broader efforts to normalise and stabilise the educational process and improve academic performance standards.
Sudan’s higher education sector has suffered catastrophic losses from the war. A previous official report found that approximately 120 public and private universities and colleges — primarily in Khartoum state, with a combined enrolment of nearly half a million students — sustained near-total infrastructure damage. Six universities in other states, including three in Darfur, were also damaged. Widespread looting and destruction hit laboratories, libraries, equipment, and university hospitals, with four teaching hospitals destroyed. The Ministry of Higher Education has estimated total war-related losses to Sudanese universities at approximately three billion dollars.
Institutions continue to face challenges including student dropout and the emigration of hundreds of academics.