More than 8 million school-age children in Sudan remain out of the classroom because of the civil war, the United Nations said at an informal UN Security Council session on safeguarding education. Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed delivered the warning on Friday, as the war entered its 1,210th day.
Mohammed said the conflict was depriving an “entire generation” of its future. Nearly three-quarters of schools in Darfur have been damaged, destroyed or otherwise made unusable since fighting began in April 2023, according to the UN.
At a glance:
- More than 8 million school-age children are out of school.
- The UN has documented more than 67 attacks on schools since 2024.
- More than 154 schools have been used for military purposes since 2024.
- More than half of Sudan’s teachers have gone unpaid.
Why children are staying out of classrooms
Five children in every six are out of school, Mohammed said. Parents have told the UN they would rather keep their children at home than send them to classrooms because home is the only place they believe they can keep them safe.
Related coverage: Covert documentation of RSF human rights abuses in Sudan’s Darfur region.
The disruption is not limited to access. Since 2024, the UN has documented more than 67 attacks on schools and more than 154 instances in which schools were used for military purposes. Mohammed said those figures almost certainly understate the true toll.
Teachers and humanitarian needs
More than half of Sudan’s teachers have gone unpaid, although many continue working “against all odds”, Mohammed said. The loss of functioning schools and paid staff is deepening the effect of the conflict on children’s education.
The UN and its partners have brought more than 1 million Sudanese children back into some form of learning this year, but Mohammed said that remains far short of what is needed. The conflict’s burden falls disproportionately on women and children, who had no say in it, she said.
A wider child-protection crisis
The war began between Sudan’s army and the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group and has displaced approximately 15 million people, according to UNICEF. Nearly 33 million people across the country are in dire need of humanitarian assistance, with children making up more than half of that total.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk described accounts of mass killings and gang rape during a visit to Sudan earlier this year. He called the conflict a human rights catastrophe unfolding in real time.
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