By the end of 2023, the conflict in Sudan had reached Al Jazirah state, forcing more than 500,000 people to flee. Today, active fighting has reduced, and many families who were displaced are now returning home. But the conflict is not over, and its impact continues to shape everyday life.
“Many have been displaced more than once and have lost the sources of income they once relied on. They are coming back with very little and having to find ways to start again,” says Yara Mowafy, Interim Deputy Country Director.
“This is where our cash and voucher assistance comes in. It gives families the purchasing power to make their own decisions and prioritize what matters most to them — whether that is food, healthcare, medicines or other essential needs,” Yara added.
Made possible with support from the Sudan Humanitarian Fund, Relief International is providing cash assistance to families across Al Jazirah, North Darfur, and Northern State.
People queue outside Relief International’s distribution point in Nausaiba, Al Jazirah, waiting for assistance.
Giving people the dignity to choose
Every household in Al Jazirah is facing a unique set of challenges. While one family may need to put food on the table, another may be struggling to afford critical medical care. Others may may need to pay their children’s school fees, pay rent, or make small investments to earn an income.
“At our distribution points, the relief is visible on people’s faces. Some are moved to tears; others stop to offer prayers for the teams supporting them,” shared a Relief International staff member.
Relief International staff speak with community members to understand their immediate challenges and needs, while sharing information about the cash assistance programme.
For one woman, that relief came at an especially difficult time. She was undergoing chemotherapy while also trying to meet the everyday needs of her family.
Relief International’s assistance gave her the freedom to put the money towards what mattered most — helping ease the burden of treatment while supporting her family.
A chance to rebuild her daughters’ future
In December 2023, as fighting intensified in Wad Madani, Samia*’s life changed when her husband disappeared, leaving her as the sole breadwinner for her six daughters and elderly parents.
Displaced by the conflict, she now lives in a house without a proper ceiling and earns a living by cutting wood, turning it into charcoal and selling it at the local market.
With her limited income keeping her family fed and housed, Samia has been unable to afford her daughters’ education. For two years, all six girls have been out of school.
At the distribution point, staff help a woman complete the paperwork needed to receive cash assistance.
By the time Samia heard about Relief International’s cash assistance programme, the registration period had already closed. Still, she kept returning to the distribution point.
Eventually, we were able to support more people and Samia was deemed eligible to receive cash support.
Samia received enough assistance to cover two months of expenses. Today she plans to use the money to pay overdue rent, settle her daughters’ school fees, and invest in a small business.
“I want to use the business to get a proper education for my girls,” she says.
A choice about what comes next
Cash assistance cannot restore all that families have lost to conflict, but it can provide a measure of stability at a time when so much remains uncertain.
So far, we have reached over 7,000 households through distributions in Tawila, Mellit, Shargh Al Jazirah and Madani Al Kubra, with distributions continuing throughout September to reach more families affected by the ongoing conflict.
For one woman undergoing chemotherapy, the assistance helped ease the cost of treatment while she continued to provide for her family. For Samia, it offered the possibility of sending her daughters back to school and building a livelihood of her own following devastating loss.
With support from the Sudan Humanitarian Fund, this assistance is giving families more than financial relief — it is giving them the freedom to make decisions for themselves at a time when conflict has taken so much of that control away.
*Name has been changed to protect privacy.
