Sudan's Education Collapse Leaves Millions Out of School

Sudan’s war has pushed the country’s education system into one of the world’s most severe crises. Recent reporting from the Global Education Cluster says the vast majority of Sudan’s children have lost nearly two school years since school closures began in April 2023, with 54% of schools in active conflict or unstable zones and 18% being used as shelters, severely limiting access to learning. UNESCO also says Sudan’s education system faces one of the world’s most severe crises, with 19 million children out of school, while UNICEF-linked reporting in 2024 described more than 90% of children as lacking access to formal education. The crisis is nationwide but especially severe in conflict-affected and displacement-heavy areas, including Khartoum, Darfur, Kordofan, and other states where schools remain closed, damaged, or occupied by displaced families. Save the Children reports the conflict has closed 10,400 schools and displaced millions of children, while teachers have gone unpaid for months. Humanitarian response is trying to expand safe learning spaces, remote learning, school reopening efforts, psychosocial support, teacher training, and emergency repairs, but funding remains far below what is needed. For 2025, Sudan’s Humanitarian Needs Response Plan originally allocated USD 108 million for education targeting 3 million school-age children, but the education response was later capped at USD 10.5 million for 2.6 million children, showing a major funding contraction.