The African Development Fund (the concessional arm of the African Development Bank Group) and the World Health Organization have agreed on a US$55 million package to help rebuild and strengthen Sudan’s health services over the next three years, according to www.afdb.org.
Signed in Nairobi and Port Sudan on 3 November 2025, the funding will support the Sudan Health Emergency Infrastructure Project (SHEIP), a program aimed at expanding access to quality healthcare across the country. The effort focuses on restoring essential services, strengthening emergency preparedness and response, and building resilience in health systems after years of conflict.
Under the agreement, WHO will lead implementation and use the funds to rehabilitate selected health facilities and install critical medical equipment and tools. Primary health care centers will be equipped to provide a core package of conflict-sensitive health and nutrition services, backed by essential supplies and staff training to ensure care in vulnerable settings is safe, reliable and appropriate.
The project also invests in quality of care and works to improve infection prevention and control, including support for training, performance-based incentives, and improved medical waste management. These efforts aim to consolidate the emergency gains achieved during the recent crisis and move the system towards a sustainable early recovery.
WHO will further strengthen Sudan’s ability to detect and quickly respond to health threats through enhanced disease surveillance and the training and deployment of rapid response teams. “The time has come to move response and recovery in parallel,” said Dr. Sibul Sarbahni, WHO Representative and Mission Director in Sudan, stressing that the new resources will help transition from life-saving emergency measures to rebuilding essential services.
The African Development Bank Group highlighted that by partnering with WHO, the African Development Bank can leverage its expertise in managing complex health emergencies while supporting broader recovery goals. Dr Alex Mubiru, the bank’s regional director for East Africa, said the collaboration aims to restore essential services and “build resilience in the face of ongoing challenges”, underscoring the long-term development ambitions behind the grant.
Source: www.afdb.org
Geographically, the program will prioritize areas that have endured the most severe disruptions, including the White Nile, Kordofan and Darfur rivers, and parts of Khartoum. These areas, where conditions of prolonged instability leave millions of people with little or no access to health care, are at the center of institutional rehabilitation and service restoration.
Recent data from the Health Resources and Services Availability Monitoring System (HeRAMS) illustrates the scale of the challenge. Only 48% of Sudan’s health facilities are fully functional, 12% are partially functional, and 40% are not fully functional. Partners estimate that at least 6 million people, including approximately 3 million women and 1.2 million internally displaced persons, will directly benefit from the project, who are expected to have access to a comprehensive package of essential health services and thereby regain some dignity and right to health.
