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Foreign Minister Baerbock travels to London for the Sudan conference
Foreign Minister Baerbock at the Sudan conference in London, © FCDO
Today, representatives of 17 key countries and five multilateral organisations will discuss ways of ending the bloody conflict in the Sudan and providing the population with humanitarian assistance. Foreign Minister Baerbock is representing Germany.
15 April will mark the second anniversary of the outbreak of the war in the Sudan. More than 12 million Sudanese have been forced to leave their homes as a result of the fighting, with almost four million of them fleeing abroad. Tens of thousands have been killed. Over half the population is going hungry. The scale of the crisis is almost unimaginable.
Foreign Minister Baerbock stated:
In large parts of Sudan, death is everywhere. Right before our eyes, the largest humanitarian disaster of our times is unfolding. Wide swaths of land have been destroyed, hundreds of thousands of families have had to flee their homes, millions are suffering hunger, and women and children are exposed to the worst sexual violence. The destructive effects of the conflict are shaking the entire region of north-eastern Africa.
Resolving the biggest humanitarian crisis of our age requires continued endeavours on the part of the international community. The most important states and organisations with influence over the parties to the conflict will therefore be represented in London. In addition to foreign ministers and high-ranking representatives of 17 states, representatives of the EU, the African Union, the UN, the Arab League and the regional organisation IGAD will also participate.
The aim of the conference co‑hosted by Germany, the UK, France, the EU and the African Union is to better coordinate the international mediation efforts, thus stepping up the pressure on the parties to the conflict to agree to serious negotiations. In London, therefore, ways and means of finding a viable political process and returning to a civilian transition will be discussed.
Another key focus of the conference will be the question of how the humanitarian situation and protection of the population can be improved. In particular, the parties to the conflict must grant unrestricted humanitarian access so that relief goods really do reach those in need.
Financing humanitarian assistance for people in the Sudan is also on the agenda. After all, caring for millions of people in the Sudan and neighbouring countries costs money and effort. Last year, Germany provided 325 million euro for humanitarian assistance in the Sudan and the neighbouring countries affected. For 2025, Foreign Minister Baerbock has announced additional humanitarian assistance to the tune of 125 million euro:
To alleviate the suffering of people in the region and to stabilise the situation in the neighbouring countries, Germany, too, is assuming responsibility and will make available an additional 125 million euro in humanitarian assistance, so that international and local aid organisations can get urgently needed food and medicine to those in need.