Germany - Sudan

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Sudanese women in Mukjar, Western Darfur

German Support for the people in Sudan

In terms of per-capita income, the Sudan is one of the poorest countries in the world, but it has a wealth of natural resources. The country is scarred by conflicts, particularly in Darfur. Germany actively supports political approaches to resolving these conflicts and seconds soldiers and police officers under two UN missions. The Sudan is also one of the main focuses of German humanitarian assistance.

SLA (Sudan Liberation Army) militia in Darfur

Current Situation

Since it became independent, the Sudan has been plagued by civil wars that stem from the neglect of huge, rural areas for the benefit of the mainly Arab elite in the capital Khartoum. In addition, there are religious and ethnic tensions as well as conflicts over the distribution of scarce resources.

In the West: The Darfur Conflict

In Western Sudan, in the Darfur region, native African farming tribes compete with ethnic Arab nomadic tribes for scarce resources. This conflict escalated in 2003. Fighting has since then cost an estimated 300,000 lives. Around two and a half million people were forced to flee their villages.

German Support

Germany provides politically important support to the peace process, to the conduction of free elections and in the framework of two UN-Missions in the South as well as humanitarian assistance.

UNMIS – German participation in the UN mission in Southern Sudan

The United Nations are monitoring the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the central government and the South. Currently 31 German soldiers and five police officers are deployed with UNMIS.

German police officer serving with the peace mission in Darfur

UNAMID: Deutsche Beteiligung an der AU/VN-Mission in Darfur

UN and AU are supporting the implementation of the Darfur-Treaty. The German Government reacted to the Darfur crisis by providing humanitarian assistance and by supporting the UNAMID mission of the United Nations and the African Union.

Mother and child in a refugee camp in Gereida/Darfur

Sudan and Eastern Chad

The western Sudanese region of Darfur and neighbouring eastern Chad together form one of the world’s most complex humanitarian crisis areas. Some 4.7 million people are in need in Darfur alone. In 2009 Germany provided around ten million euro for humanitarian aid projects in the Sudan and Chad.

Cultural projects in the Sudan

Until 2008 around EUR 312,000 was made available to the Sudan for around 30 projects under the cultural heritage preservation programme.

Further sources of information

German Government welcomes ceasefire for Darfur

Sudanese President al-Bashir and rebel leader Ibrahim conclude a ceasefire agreement in Doha, Qatar (23 February 2010)

Andreas Peschke, Federal Foreign Office Spokesperson, welcomed the ceasefire signed in Doha for the conflict in Sudan’s Darfur region as a “step towards a comprehensive peace treaty”. Peschke advocated swift implementation and called on all rebel groups to join the agreement.

The Darfur conflict

The conflict in the westsudanese area of Darfur escalated in 2003. On 31 July 2007, the UN Security Council authorized the deployment of a joint UN and AU headed peace mission in Darfur (UNAMID). Germany provides substantial funds in contribution to this UN mission.

Bilateral relations