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Sudan : “In Zamzam, we fight famine with desperate determinations.”
[Paris, 24 September 2024] As preparations are underway for a high-level ministerial event on the 25th of September, held on the sidelines of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, to address the humanitarian response in Sudan and the surrounding region, the NGO SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL is once again raising the alarm about the situation in the country, particularly in North Darfur’s Zamzam camp, located near El Fasher.
“In Zamzam, we are fighting famine with sheer desperation. We are witnessing a total humanitarian collapse. The camp holds around 500,000 displaced people, and there is nothing left—no food, no supplies, no functioning healthcare infrastructure, and almost no access to medical care,” laments Renaud Douci, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL’s field coordinator in El Fasher, North Darfur.
Last August, the IPC¹ declared that 10% of families in Zamzam were experiencing famine, while 40% were in a state of food emergency. This marks the third official famine declaration of the 21st century. In practical terms, this means that half the camp’s population is at immediate risk of dying from hunger. “Since the beginning of the year, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL has repeatedly raised the alarm about Sudan’s humanitarian crisis and called for urgent action from the international community. Our colleagues at Médecins Sans Frontières have also been voicing their concerns for several months². It is incomprehensible that nothing is changing. North Darfur is under blockade. The humanitarian situation is indescribable, yet it does not seem to impact people. We are shouting into the void whilst talking about dying human beings!” says Justine Muzik Piquemal, the Sudan Regional Director for SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL.
SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL is one of the few NGOs active on the ground. The organisation’s most recent assessments highlight the dire health conditions in the Zamzam camp. Out of the 43 sites surveyed by our teams, 29 cannot provide the minimum survival standard of 7.5 litres of water per person per day, leaving 67% of the population without adequate access to safe drinking water. Sanitation is also in a critical state, with 93% of the population urgently needing access to functioning toilets. These conditions exacerbate an already catastrophic situation, increasing the risk of disease outbreaks and epidemics.
“We are doing what we can—delivering water by tan trucks to four hospitals³ treating people suffering from malnutrition, rehabilitating latrines and water points, and building new ones. But El Fasher is under siege, and Zamzam camp is effectively blockaded. This drastically hampers our ability to respond. Last August, for example, bombings and gunfire in El Fasher forced us to confine our teams for their safety, limiting our operations when more was desperately needed,” explains Renaud Douci.
Access to the area is further restricted due to the conflict-damaged infrastructures and recent floodings (destroyed bridges, impassable roads, …), shortages of essential supplies (fuel, generators, …), and limited access to cash (little to no operational banks and a failing phone network preventing money transfers).
“With just 48 hours until this ministerial event on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, we renew our urgent call to action. Doing nothing condemns thousands of people to certain death. The international community must mobilize, but it is also critical that the parties to the conflict allow greater humanitarian access and uphold international humanitarian law. Every minute matters…“, concludes Justine Muzik Piquemal.
Press contact :
Spokespeople are available in French and English.
Charlotte Nouette-Delorme : +33 7 85 42 56 99 / +33 1 76 21 87 87
cnouettedelorme@solidarites.org Or presse@solidarites.org
Website : solidarites.org/en/
X : @Solidarites_Int - Instagram : @solidaritesinternational
¹ Last July, the Famine Review Committee (FRC) declared a famine situation in Zamzam camp following an analysis carried out by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) in June.
² Food must be delivered to people starved by blockade in Zamzam camp | MSF
³ SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL is supplying water to two hospitals in the Zamzam camp and two in the town of El Fasher.