Malnutrition Rates in Sudan’s Children: Latest Statistics and Urgent Needs

Sudan is facing one of the gravest humanitarian catastrophes of our time, with its children among the most vulnerable. The speed at which malnutrition is rising among Sudan’s children is alarming, and immediate action is needed to prevent mass fatalities, permanent impairment, and generational decline. In this blog, we examine the latest statistics, explore root causes, and spotlight how local innovations, including Sudanese peanut programs, and global responses are attempting to calm the tide. The stakes could not be higher.

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What is Malnutrition?

Before diving into Sudan’s crisis, it’s essential to define malnutrition and its variants, to understand how Sudanese children suffer:

Malnutrition broadly refers to an imbalance in a person’s intake of nutrients, whether deficiency, excess, or imbalance. In humanitarian contexts, we often mean undernutrition (deficiency). The key forms relevant for children include:

• Acute malnutrition (also called wasting): low weight for height, indicating recent and severe weight loss.
  
• Severe acute malnutrition (SAM): the most extreme form of wasting; often life-threatening without treatment.
  
• Chronic malnutrition (or stunting): low height for age, reflecting long-term, cumulative nutritional deprivation.
  
• Underweight: low weight for age; an indicator that can reflect both chronic and acute malnutrition.
  

In humanitarian crises, acute malnutrition and severe acute malnutrition (SAM) are immediate priorities, because they carry the highest risk of death and irreversible damage if untreated.

Children with severe acute malnutrition may suffer from weakened immune function, higher vulnerability to infection, impaired cognitive development, and, in worst cases, death. In fact, malnourished children are up to 11 times more likely to die than well-nourished peers.

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Why Are Malnutrition Rates in Sudan’s Children So High?

Sudan’s malnutrition crisis is not the result of a single factor, but a combination of multiple causes. Below are the key factors:

1. Ongoing Conflict & Displacement

Since April 2023, intense fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has spread across the country, disrupting food systems, markets, supply chains, healthcare, and access to humanitarian aid. 

Conflict has forced millions internally displaced. UNICEF reports that in 2025 the number of internally displaced persons rose from 9 million to 13 million, with children representing over half of those displaced. Displacement undermines agriculture, severs access to farmland, and exaggerates dependence on external aid.

In Darfur and other conflict zones, many communities are effectively cut off or besieged. In North Darfur, for instance, severe access constraints hamper the delivery of food, therapeutic nutrition, and health services.

2. Acute Food Insecurity & Famine Conditions

Sudan is experiencing acute food insecurity on a massive scale. In many regions, more than 80% of people are in crisis or worse food insecurity phases, per Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) assessments. 

In Melit, North Darfur, a Relief International survey found that 34.2% of children under five were acutely malnourished, an appalling rate far above emergency thresholds. The survey also showed that 41.8% of children were underweight, and nearly 45.1% had been ill in the prior two weeks. 

In 2025, UNICEF projects that some 3.2 million children will suffer from acute malnutrition, with 770,000 of them in severe acute malnutrition (SAM).

3. Collapse of Public Services & Health Systems

War has ravaged the health system. Many stabilization centers for children with SAM have been destroyed or rendered nonfunctional. According to some assessments, 20% of such centers are offline, and 24% of outpatient nutrition services are nonfunctional. Additionally, outbreaks of disease like measles, diarrhea, and malaria compound malnutrition by increasing children’s nutritional needs while making absorption difficult.

4. Economic Collapse, Inflation & Food Price Shocks

Sudan’s macroeconomy is in crisis. Inflation, currency depreciation, scarcity of fuel and inputs, and supply chain breakdowns mean food is prohibitively expensive or physically unavailable in many areas. The conflict itself has damaged harvests, looted granaries, and disrupted trade routes. The decline in purchasing power pushes families to less nutritious, cheaper diets or skipping meals altogether.

5. Seasonal & Climate Stress

Sudan regularly endures droughts, floods, erratic rainfall, and desertification. These climate stresses reduce crop yields and make livelihoods precarious. Combined with conflict, climate variability intensifies food shortfalls.

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Impact of Malnutrition on Sudanese Children

Short-Term Effects:

• Increased Mortality
  Untreated SAM carries a mortality rate of up to 20–30%. Acute malnutrition multiplies the risk of death from common illnesses like diarrhea, pneumonia, malaria. 
• Frequent Illness & Weakened Immunity
  Malnourished children are more susceptible to infections. In Relief International’s survey, 45.1% of children had been ill in the prior two weeks. 
• Medical Complications of SAM
  Edema, micronutrient deficiencies, severe diarrhea, dehydration are all compound risks. Many children may require hospitalization.
• Acute Brain & Growth Setbacks
  The brain of a young child is highly vulnerable; immediate deficits in energy, protein, and micronutrients impede cell growth and synapse formation.
  
  

Long-Term Consequences:

• Cognitive Impairment & Learning Loss
  Children who survive may suffer irreversible intellectual reductions, poorer school performance, and reduced productivity in adulthood.
• Stunting & Lifelong Disability
  Chronic malnutrition yields stunting, with height-for-age deficits that become permanent. Stunted children often remain smaller and weaker throughout life.
• Cycle of Malnutrition
  Malnourished girls may grow into malnourished mothers, perpetuating poor fetal growth, low birth weight babies, and the cycle continues. UNICEF narratives have discussed maternal malnutrition in Sudan, where severely undernourished mothers cannot breastfeed adequately.
• Chronic Disease Risk Later in Life
  Undernutrition in early years is linked to higher risk of obesity, diabetes, hypertension in adulthood in some contexts.
  
  

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SAPA’s Research Exhibits Severe Food Crisis in Sudan

1. Hotspots in Darfur

• In North Darfur, the number of children being treated for severe acute malnutrition (SAM) surged by 46% between January – May 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. Over 40,000 in North Darfur were admitted in just five months.
• In Central Darfur, acute malnutrition among under-5 children is estimated at 15.6%, and in Zamzam camp close to 30%.
• In Melit, more than one in three children is acutely malnourished per Relief International data.
  
  

2. Transport Disruptions and Blockades

• In parts of North Darfur, MSF had to halt care because supply blockades prevented delivery of therapeutic food and medical supplies.
• In Khartoum and its peripheries, access challenges hamper outreach to peripheral neighborhoods and internally displaced communities.
  
  

3. Acute Food Insecurity & Famine Risk

• In multiple locations, survey data indicates areas exceeding emergency levels of malnutrition, with GAM rates greater than 30%. 
• The deterioration is swift. GAM in Melit rose from 27.9% to 34.2% within 12 months.
  
  

4. Projected Burden

• UNICEF’s data suggest 3 million children already acutely malnourished; around 650,000 suffering from SAM. 
• UNICEF warns that in 2025 some 3.7 million children under age 5 may face severe acute malnutrition requiring life-saving interventions.
  
  

5. Regional Differences

• Conditions in South Darfur are also dire, though somewhat less reported; MSF is distributing 2,000 calorie per day food rations for families to prevent further deterioration. 
• Khartoum state, the capital, is not immune. Urban displacement, economic collapse, and limited service delivery mean children in informal settlements also suffer high rates of undernutrition.
  
  

6. Nutrition Access vs Need Gap

• Despite enormous demand, only a fraction of children with SAM are reached. For example, in 2024, admissions for SAM rose 43.8% from 2023, yet still represent far below need. 
• Many therapeutic and stabilization centers are offline, and logistical, security, and funding gaps severely undermine coverage.
  
  

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Call to Urgent Action

The crisis of malnutrition rates in Sudan’s children is not a distant projection, it is unfolding now, with terrible consequences. Millions of children risk death, lifelong impairment, or generational poverty if we fail to act decisively. Sudan needs:

• Massive scale-up in nutrition response, with special strategies for conflict zones and mobile delivery.
• Expanded use of local nutrition assets like Sudanese peanuts, fortified blends, and community-based screening.
• Intensive global advocacy to sustain funding and ensure access despite conflict.
• Integration between nutrition, food security, health, WASH, and livelihood recovery.

At SAPA, we are committed to supporting data-driven interventions, advocating for safe access, and partnering with local actors to ensure no child is forgotten.

FAQs

1. What is malnutrition and how does it affect Sudanese children?
Malnutrition broadly means an imbalance in nutrient intake, primarily undernutrition in crisis settings. Sudanese children suffer from acute malnutrition, including severe acute malnutrition (SAM), which leads to weakened immunity and higher death risk. For details, see the WHO report on Sudan’s malnutrition crisis and SAPA’s nutrition program.

2. Why are malnutrition rates so high among children in Sudan?
The crisis arises from overlapping factors: ongoing conflict disrupting food systems since April 2023, widespread displacement rising to 13 million, collapsed health services, severe economic inflation, and climate stresses. Each element severely limits children’s access to adequate nutrition.

3. How many children are currently affected by acute malnutrition in Sudan?
In 2025, around 3.2 million children suffer from acute malnutrition, with approximately 770,000 cases of SAM threatening their survival without urgent interventions.

4. What are the short-term impacts of malnutrition on children’s health?
Children with SAM face a mortality rate up to 30%, frequent illnesses as shown by the 45.1% illness rate in Relief International’s survey, and complications requiring hospitalization.

5. What are the potential long-term effects of childhood malnutrition?
Malnutrition leads to irreversible cognitive impairments, stunting, and perpetuates an intergenerational cycle of poor health, increasing lifelong risks of chronic diseases.

6. In what ways has conflict worsened malnutrition in Sudan?
Since April 2023, conflict has caused massive displacement, children represent over half of the 13 million internally displaced. Access to treatment is blocked in conflict-heavy regions, such as the doubling of severely malnourished children treated in North Darfur.

7. How have economic factors contributed to the malnutrition crisis?
Food prices have skyrocketed due to inflation and supply breakdowns, pushing families toward cheaper, less nutritious diets. The economic challenges and their impact on food access are documented in a detailed PMC health systems study.

8. Are there effective local solutions to combat malnutrition in Sudan?
Local interventions like fortified blends using Sudanese peanuts and community screening are key to improving nutrition, supported by international aid programs.

9. How has the international humanitarian community responded to this crisis?
Organizations including UNICEF and Relief International provide emergency treatment and nutrition surveys show worsening conditions, such as a 34.2% acute malnutrition rate in Melit, North Darfur, with global advocacy pushing for expanded funding.

10. What actions are needed urgently to address child malnutrition in Sudan?
Massive nutrition scale-up, safe humanitarian access, integration of food security with health and WASH services, and sustained funding are critical. Learn how SAPA is advocating and partnering locally to meet these goals.