An interview with Renaud Douci, Field coordinator in Sudan

What led you to humanitarian work?

I had travelled to Palestine as a journalist to cover the Second Intifada. It was there that I first met humanitarian workers. I saw that they were able to get anywhere because they could rely on their organization, which ensured their safety. It resonated with me immediately. So it was as humanitarian worker that I next returned to conflict zones.

Yet, when you started working at SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL, you were not in the field.

I joined SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL to manage publications, press relations, fundraising, and the organization’s brand identity… I was fortunate enough to spend nine years at the head of the communications department. I loved seeing the organization’s evolution and contributing to what makes it strong and what gives it its purpose: doing everything possible to work in areas where people are in danger.

One day, you left to take up a position as a field coordinator.

Yes, the teams on the ground wondered who this director of communications was who had turned up to take charge of a field base. But at SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL’s head office, we’re very close to the action on the ground.

In the communications department, I had a front-row seat to crises, was involved in every aspect of the work, and was often sent out on missions. I eventually left to take up a post as field coordinator in the Central African Republic, then in Mozambique. Then this opportunity arose to go to Sudan.

In Sudan, Tawila has become the world’s largest camp for displaced people. What is the work like?

A year and a half ago, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL tasked me with setting up the base in Tawila, as close as possible to the violence in Darfur. Since April 2025, more than 800,000 survivors – mostly women with their children – have ended up here after fleeing El-Fasher and enduring the worst atrocities. They are trying to survive, to keep their heads above water.

So, since the very start of this crisis, we haven’t stopped: we deliver water by truck to 50,000 people every day, we’ve equipped 26 boreholes, we’ve fought against cholera, and we’ve distributed emergency kits and cash to more than 60,000 families. Also, we must not forget those who have been unable to make it to the camp. Simply our presence can provide protection, which is why we go out to assist them. The team is incredible and constantly pushes itself to do more. That has enabled us to achieve three times more than what was expected of us. I feel very fortunate to be working here. Being a field coordinator is the best job in the world.