Civil war causes healthcare system to collapse in Sudan's capital

Nearly two years into Sudan’s brutal civil war, the country’s health care system is teetering on the edge of total collapse.

Hospitals have been looted, destroyed, or forcibly shut down. Medical personnel have been displaced or killed, and vital infrastructure like ambulances is often blocked or destroyed. This devastation has left millions without access to critical medical care, and the human cost continues to rise. Once home to nearly 100 private medical facilities, the capital Khartoum has, according to an article by NPR,  none operational anymore. The civil war, which began in April 2023, has triggered one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises. Roughly 15 million people have been displaced, with more than three million fleeing the country and nearly nine million internally displaced.

The UN has warned that over 25 million people are now in need of humanitarian aid. Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reported that attacks on medical facilities are increasing across Sudan, especially in areas affected by the most intense fighting. MSF has witnessed health centers across the country struggling to function under the pressure of mass displacement and dwindling resources. The organization has also raised concerns about the deteriorating situation in neighboring South Sudan, where political tensions have recently escalated into violence between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and Vice President Riek Machar. While the Upper Nile State has garnered the most international attention, MSF warns that violence is also flaring up in other areas such as Jonglei, Unity, and Western Central Equatoria. 

“We are talking about a major conflict that is taking place over multiple fronts and multiple locations,” said MSF’s operations manager Bakri Abubakr. According to Abubakr, entire villages have been emptied, and hospitals and health centers abandoned by their staff due to ongoing violence. “The health system in the country is collapsing,” he said, noting that even before the latest wave of conflict, only about half of South Sudan’s medical facilities were functional. About 80% of the country’s healthcare infrastructure relies on funding from international donors, MSF reports. Meanwhile, attacks on health care workers and facilities are escalating. MSF’s Abdalla Hussein highlighted the targeting of medical professionals, civilian populations, and even supply routes. 

He cited attacks on barges carrying vital aid along the White Nile and looting of remote outposts. According to the United Nations, eight medical facilities have been struck this year, though MSF believes the real number is likely higher. Zakariya Mwatia, MSF’s head of mission, described the desperate state of patients arriving in cities like Malakal after enduring weeks in the bush with no access to shelter or treatment. Many arrive in critical condition, only to die because overwhelmed and under-resourced health workers are unable to save them. “We are yet to see the worst,” Mwatia warned. The conflict began on April 15, 2023, when a power struggle between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group that was once allied with the army, erupted into full-scale war. 

The fighting stems from disagreements over military reform and the integration of the RSF into the national armed forces. All peace initiatives so far have failed. According to the UN, Sudan is now facing one of the world’s worst crises in terms of displacement and hunger. More than 20,000 people have been killed since the conflict began, and the country remains in a state of chaos with no resolution in sight. As the fighting continues and humanitarian conditions worsen, the collapse of Sudan’s health system could have deadly consequences for millions of people caught in the crossfire. 

By Nazrin Sadigova