UN: Sudan’s Healthcare System Teetering on Brink With 20-30% of Facilities functional

The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a grave warning on Friday about the state of Sudan’s collapsing healthcare system, with only 20-30% of facilities functioning at minimal capacity, Anadolu Agency reported yesterday.

According to WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier, the situation is particularly dire in remote areas, where health centers have been destroyed, looted, or are grappling with critical shortages of staff, medicines, vaccines, equipment, and supplies.

Medical supplies are currently meeting just 25% of the country’s needs, the news agency added.

Lindmeier noted that WHO’s warehouse in Al Gezirah state has been inaccessible since last December, and some regions, including Darfur, have not received medical supplies for over a year. This has left many Sudanese suffering from chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, cancer, and kidney failure at risk of life-threatening complications.

Disease outbreaks are also surging, with over 1.3 million cases of malaria, 11,000 cases of cholera, 4,600 cases of measles, and 8,500 cases of dengue fever reported. Neighboring Chad is also grappling with outbreaks of malaria, measles, dengue, and hepatitis E.

While WHO has reached nearly 2.5 million people through direct support and emergency aid deliveries, the agency warns that Sudan’s fragile healthcare system hangs by a thread.