Canada pledges $132M in aid for Sudan as conflict hits 1-year mark

The conflict has killed thousands of civilians, forced millions of people to flee within Sudan and to neighbouring countries and created one of the world's worst hunger crises.

Canada is committing another $132.2 million in humanitarian funding to help people displaced by the violent conflict in Sudan that has been raging for the past year, the government announced Friday.

The conflict has killed thousands of civilians, forced millions of people to flee within Sudan and to neighbouring African countries and created one of the world’s worst hunger crises. The United Nations’ World Food Program has warned about a third of the country’s population, or 18 million people, face acute hunger, with five million on the verge of starvation.

“The humanitarian situation is dire,” Canada’s International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen told Global News in an interview.

The new funding includes $100.7 million in direct humanitarian assistance and $31.5 million to UN projects aimed at addressing sexual and reproductive health rights in Sudan and South Sudan, as well as gender-based violence.

“Whenever there is a very prolonged conflict, we know that women and girls suffer disproportionately, and this conflict is no different,” Hussen said.

“We’ve seen very serious rates, very high rates of gender-based violence, very high rates of sexual assaults.”

Aid agencies say fighting, looting and bureaucratic hurdles have severely hampered the delivery of relief. The World Food Program said last week it finally managed to deliver food in the heavily-affected Darfur region after months of delays, but added more aid is needed on a persistent basis.

Although Hussen acknowledged “logistical challenges” to ensuring aid is delivered to those who need it within Sudan, he said there has been less resistance and roadblocks in neighbouring countries like South Sudan, Chad, Ethiopia and Central African Republic that have accepted refugees.