Sudan: Darfur faces historic drought which worsens famine

The Sudanese region of Darfur is facing a drought on a scale not seen since the 1980s, according to the World Food Program (WFP), worsening the famine which is affecting the country which has been facing a civil war for three years.

“Darfur has not experienced such a drought since 1984,” Carl Skau, deputy executive director of the World Food Program (WFP), said Monday after passing through the region during the rainy season, which runs from June to September.

“Everywhere I stopped, people wanted to talk about the drought,” he continued. “Everyone is concerned that this will have serious repercussions on agriculture and crops.” Darfur, already marked by decades of conflict, has been the scene of some of the worst violence of the war in Sudan, which since 2023 has pitted the army against the paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). This conflict has already cost the lives of more than 200,000 people.

Agriculture collapses, displacement increases

The region is home to 5.6 million displaced people, according to UN figures, and many are severely undernourished. The size of France, Darfur usually greens up during the rainy season, when its valleys and rivers overflow, irrigating vital agricultural land to prevent famine.

Local officials have warned of the consequences of the drought, which is causing new waves of displacement and the collapse of local agriculture. The Emergency Response Unit in Kutum, North Darfur, warned of an “increasing crisis affecting livelihoods caused by lack of rainfall and pasture.”