Sudan donors pledge £1bn
Donors at a Berlin conference pledged more than £1bn for Sudan as the war entered its fourth year, exceeding the conference target. (theguardian.com) But funding has not translated into a halt in fighting — the country remains effectively split between a military‑backed government in Khartoum and an RSF‑controlled administration in Darfur, and observers say ceasefire prospects remain remote. ( )
Donors pledged about €1.5 billion for Sudan in Berlin on April 15, as the war entered its fourth year without a ceasefire in sight. (aljazeera.com) The conference was co-hosted by Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, the African Union and the European Union. The European Union and its member states said they would provide €811.84 million of the total. (civil-protection-humanitarian-aid.ec.europa.eu) Germany said before the meeting that it would contribute €125 million, and Reuters reported Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul later announced a German pledge of €212 million in humanitarian aid. Sudan’s government rejected the conference in advance because it was not invited. (msn.com; msn.com) The money lands in what the United Nations calls the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says 33.7 million people in Sudan will need assistance in 2026, up 3.3 million from 2025. (unocha.org) United Nations agencies said last week that about 14 million people have been forced from their homes since fighting began on April 15, 2023. That includes 9 million displaced inside Sudan and 4.4 million who fled to neighboring countries, mainly Chad, South Sudan and Egypt. (news.un.org) The war began as a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces, led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti. Three years later, Sudan is effectively split between an army-backed government in Khartoum and a rival Rapid Support Forces administration in Darfur. (abcnews.com) The Berlin co-hosts said Sudanese civilian groups used the conference to press for de-escalation, protection of civilians and a political process. The same statement called for an immediate ceasefire and rejected any moves toward parallel governments. (gov.uk) Aid pledges do not settle the central problem: access and security. United Nations officials said attacks on health care continue, hunger is spreading, and relief operations are still constrained by the fighting. (ungeneva.org) That leaves Berlin with more money on paper than diplomats expected, but no sign that the two armed camps are any closer to stopping the war that began three years ago on April 15, 2023. (theguardian.com; abcnews.com)
