Sudan farmland damage deepens hunger and displacement
Nearly 40,000 square kilometres of Sudan farmland have been degraded since conflict erupted in April 2023, with damage visible in satellite analysis covering the country’s agricultural zones.
The findings, published by World Vision in The Hollowed Earth, compare satellite “health checks” between 2023 and 2025 and point to severe damage in the Gezira Scheme and sharp declines across the Sorghum Belt, which traditionally provides 80% of the country’s cereal.
The conflict has also fuelled what World Vision describes as the world’s largest displacement crisis. It says 1.8 million children have been forced across borders, more than 3.7 million children have been displaced within Sudan, and 41% of the population is in acute hunger, including 5.5 million people in emergency or catastrophic conditions.
Damage across key farming zones
World Vision Australia chief executive Grant Bayldon said the farmland losses were directly affecting children. “Behind every hectare of lost farmland is a child just like Yusuf who is going to bed hungry, and parents choosing which of their children eats today. The land that fed Sudan’s children is disappearing before our eyes, and with it, their future,” Bayldon said.
An 11-year-old identified as Yusuf, whose name was changed to protect his identity, described fleeing after his family home was shelled. “The sky was black with smoke… We ran until we could not breathe,” he said.
World Vision said recovery could eventually include Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration, a land restoration technique pioneered by Tony Rinaudo in Niger in the 1980s. The organisation said the method is already being used in Ethiopia, South Sudan, Chad and the Central African Republic, but that recovery in Sudan can only begin once access and peace allow.
Since the conflict began, World Vision says it has reached 3.2 million people in Sudan, including one million children, with food, cash, health services and protection, while also supporting farmers with seeds, tools, livestock and water systems.
