The consequences of neglecting Sudan will be felt far beyond its borders

The World Food Programme has reported that 20 million civilians in war-ravaged Sudan are grappling with severe hunger, with five million facing emergency levels of starvation and 200,000 already confronting catastrophic food shortages. Despite this dire situation, the agency may have to reduce its operations in the coming weeks due to dwindling funding, according to the WFP's acting chief Carl Skau.

In El Fasher, once home to a million residents, only 20,000 now receive any food assistance. In Tawila, Darfur, where nearly a million people are now sheltering, the WFP provides food to about 950,000 people each month, but can only afford half rations.

The world's current preoccupation with multiple crises is allowing Sudan's humanitarian response to retreat, a mistake that carries moral and practical consequences. Sudan's central location in the Red Sea and Horn of Africa makes its neglect particularly problematic. Mass displacement due to the country's three-year war is already pushing migration flows towards the Mediterranean, the Gulf, and neighboring nations like Chad, South Sudan, and Ethiopia.

Violent instability along the Red Sea coast poses a threat to shipping lanes that are already strained. Rising fuel and fertilizer prices, exacerbated by poor harvests, will soon turn Sudan's food crisis into a broader regional issue.

Sudan's hunger crisis is a litmus test for whether funding fatigue and geopolitical rivalries will dictate who has access to food. The UAE has provided $800 million in aid to Sudan since the war began in April 2023, along with the US, pushing for a nationwide arms embargo at the UN Security Council. However, individual goodwill is insufficient to address the collective response this crisis demands.

The world should not view sustaining life-saving operations in Sudan as an optional measure – it is an investment in the stability of an entire region. Three years of fighting have proven that relying on armed leaderships to determine Sudan's political future is untenable, with both sides accused of committing mass atrocities, including the use of chemical weapons by the Sudanese Armed Forces.

Therefore, the principle that Sudan's future belongs to its people, not its armed factions, should now guide all diplomatic and humanitarian efforts to end this devastating conflict.