Where to Now? Agency Expulsion in Sudan: Consequences and Next Steps

On 4 March, the government of Sudan expelled 13 international NGOs and revoked the licences of three national NGOs.1 In all, 7,610 aid workers – 308 internationals and 7,302 nationals – have been directly affected in Northern Sudan (including Darfur), where these agencies accounted for 40% of aid workers, delivering more than half the total amount of aid. NGO services – access to water, health and medical services, food rations – have been jeopardised. Assistance to Darfur’s 2.7 million-plus displaced people has been severely compromised, and a number of health-related crises are already emerging. In the Three Areas, the repercussions of these expulsions could undermine the gains made in realising the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). In Eastern Sudan, the expulsion of these agencies has deprived the region of critical food, livelihoods and medical assistance. This situation has brought the modus operandi of international humanitarian assistance agencies into sharp focus as those NGOs and UN agencies still in Sudan struggle to plug the gaps. This ALNAP-HPG paper offers a snapshot of what the expelled agencies were doing, where they were based and the type of assistance they were providing at the time of their departure.

This working paper was originally published by the Overseas Development Institute.