Reposted from Charity Watch
With ongoing conflicts in Gaza, Ukraine, and Haiti making daily headlines it is easy to develop compassion fatigue or experience a "psychic numbing" in the face of the world's problems, which are far bigger than any one of us can tackle alone.
When each person gives what they can, however, we can make a positive impact in ways large and small. This brings us to the topic of the forgotten conflict in Sudan.
Last year the armed hostilities that erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) intensified the humanitarian crisis in the African nation of Sudan. Cindy McCain, Executive Director of the United Nations' World Food Program, told the Washington Post that "kids are dying of starvation within Darfur and other parts of the country" and that the situation is on a path to being "a bigger disaster than Gaza..."
Both the SAF and the RSF face accusations of committing atrocious acts of violence against Sudan’s civilians, which include random detentions and vicious killings.
CharityWatch announces a list of legitimate, efficient, and accountable charities involved in efforts to aid and assist the people of Sudan amid the continuing crisis.
The people of Sudan need immediate aid and relief.
Warning: Unscrupulous charities will sometimes use disasters as a money grab to raise funds for unrelated causes. CharityWatch does not add just any charity to our disaster alerts. We sort through the marketing fluff of charities to find out what specific aid is being provided to victims before adding an organization to our list. This list will be updated as new information becomes available.
The charities listed below are Top-Rated by CharityWatch for spending at least 75% of their cash budgets on programs; for maintaining fundraising efficiency of $25 or less to raise each $100 in cash donations; and for meeting CharityWatch's governance & transparency benchmarks.
ATTENTION: The charities listed in this alert were Top-Rated by CharityWatch at the time of its publication. CharityWatch updates our ratings throughout the year. To see if a particular charity is currently Top-Rated, please click on its name, below.
CARE USA is currently focused on the states of East Darfur, South Darfur, South Kordofan, Kassala and Khartoum, providing relief services, helping people restore their livelihoods, and promoting peace and stability. CARE is also helping refugees in neighboring Chad with the same kinds of programs and services.
Catholic Relief Services is addressing urgent and longer-term needs. Catholic Relief Services' focus is supporting the most vulnerable, conflict-affected communities, and internally displaced families in the city of Khartoum. They are working with local and international partners to implement programming in some of Sudan's most hard-to-reach areas across the five Darfur States, with plans to expand to eastern Sudan in the future.
Direct Relief & Direct Relief Foundation is helping arrange shipments of insulin since October 2023 when they helped arrange a shipment via a new ocean route into Port Sudan. Since October 2023 several other shipments have been deployed with more containers being prepared all the time although Direct Relief is shipping materials in smaller quantities than would be ideal to reduce the risk of seizure as the country's civil war continues.
Doctors Without Borders USA works in 11 of Sudan's 18 states, running a range of activities including primary and secondary health care, mobile clinics, outpatient and inpatient nutrition activities, reproductive and mental health care, vaccination campaigns, health promotion, and water and sanitation support. Since the conflict began in April 2023, Doctors Without Borders USA has made donations of medical supplies, fuel, oxygen, water tanks, and other critical needs to hospitals and other health facilities throughout the country. They are continuing to adapt and scale up their emergency response in accessible areas to address the most acute humanitarian and medical needs.
International Rescue Committee is providing an integrated health, nutrition and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) program. It has set up two new mobile medical clinics, one in Gedaref-Mufasa and one in Russeiras Locality-Blue Nile state to help people who have recently fled to different areas from the region of Al Jazirah, where IRC has suspended operations. IRC teams are actively addressing malnutrition in food-insecure communities, employing a combined protocol approach using therapeutic food (RUTF). They are also prioritizing the rebuilding of education services and offering psychosocial support for children coping with the trauma of the crisis.
Medical Teams International has partnered with the U.N. Refugee Agency to assess the conditions of 7 camps in the White Nile state. With the U.N. Refugee Agency's funding support they are expanding their programs across the region to serve more people with life-saving health care. After the outbreak of civil war in 2023, they expanded their work to care for the millions of people leaving conflict-affected areas.
Project HOPE is working in conjunction with the Sudanese American Physicians Association (SAPA) and has successfully delivered two World Health Organization (WHO) Interagency Emergency Health Kits (IEHKS) to Al-Nau Hospital in Omdurman. Project HOPE continues to secure funding and additional supplies, and is continuing to coordinate with local and international agencies to find other potential avenues to support the humanitarian needs in Sudan.
Save the Children is serving the needs of vulnerable unaccompanied and separated children, and other children affected by the Sudan conflict, including family tracing, reunification, and psychosocial support.
Sudan Relief Fund provides their partners with critical lifesaving food, clean water, shelter, clothing, medicine, and more. They are working to improve the lives of the South Sudanese and the oppressed people of the Nuba Mountains in Sudan.
United States Fund for UNICEF is committed to providing vital support and services to vulnerable children and families in Sudan and those who have fled to neighboring countries. UNICEF's top priorities include ensuring safe passage and protection for children, maintaining access to health care and other critical services, and responding to new humanitarian needs, including emergency education supplies and psychosocial support.
World Vision has reached more than 1.5 million people over the past year—most of them women and children—with life-saving aid, including food; access to clean water; child protection, health and nutrition, and sanitation and hygiene programs. They are currently prioritizing food distribution in stable areas of Sudan.
Zakat Foundation of America is working to strengthen Sudan's medical infrastructure, supply medicine, facilitate the professional training of physicians, provide emergency care, and address food insecurity.
