Sudan hosting over 1m refugees, asylum seekers: report

September 20, 2022 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan hosts one of the largest refugee populations in Africa, with 1.14 million refugees and asylum seekers as of June 30, a report shows.

Data on the number of refugees and asylum seekers are contained in the mid-year report issued by the Refugee Consultation Forum on the country’s refugee response plan.

The government, it said, continues to maintain an open-door policy, with new arrivals often fleeing conflict, food insecurity and lack of basic services in neighbouring countries.

“Persistent insecurity in countries of origin contribute to protracted refugee caseloads remaining in Sudan, as opportunities for safe, voluntary, and dignified returns are obstructed,” partly reads the mid-term report.

By mid-2022, it noted, Sudan is hosting 807,532 South Sudanese refugees, primarily in White Nile (282,807), Khartoum (191,312) and East Darfur (100,065); 131,191 Eritrean refugees primarily in Kassala (103,340), Gedaref (13,840), and Khartoum (9,275) states; and 73,448 Ethiopian refugees, primarily in Gedaref (49,944), and Blue Nile (9,688) states.

According to the report, other refugee population groups also include those from Burundi, Chad, the Central African Republic (CAR), Congo, Yemen as well as Syria.

“Of the 1.14 million refugee population, 38% reside in camps and 62% in out-of-camp and urban settings,” it observed.

In 2022, sustained economic decline continues to affect Sudan, with the annual inflation of the Sudanese pound recorded at 148% in June, state the midterm report, adding that “Lower than average harvests have reduced cereal availability, contributing to rising food prices, and exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine as Sudan is largely dependent on Russia and Ukraine for wheat imports”.

Rising prices, high inflation and challenges in supply chains, it noted, have greatly reduced household purchasing power, with 11.7 million people at risk of food insecurity.

(ST)