Sudan: Over 80,000 children to benefit as Save the Children delivers lifesaving medicines to Tawila after three-week journey

 

Families and children in Tawila in North Darfur, one of the hardest to reach areas of Sudan, have received a life-saving boost after Save the Children delivered 30 metric tons of medicine and nutrition supplies following a challenging three-week road trip, Save the Children said.

The shipment, transported from Port Sudan, is expected to support over 80,000 children and 57,000 adults in Tawila and is enough to keep 20 health facilities and mobile clinics serving displaced communities running for six months. 

Tawila is home to more than  650,000 internally displaced people, most of whom fled violent attacks in North Darfur’s Zamzam and Abu Shouk camps last year. Displaced families are largely dependent on humanitarian agencies for health and nutrition services.   

Part of a larger drug consignment that arrived in Port Sudan from Nairobi, the shipment took three weeks to reach Tawila, crossing extreme desert terrain, perilous routes, and a volatile security environment.  This is Save the Children’s fourth consignment to Tawila since February 2025 and the first since a massive influx of displaced people in October 2025.

The delivery that arrived on Wednesday last week includes essential drugs such as antibiotics to treat respiratory infections, fluids, multivitamins, topical medications, ear and eye drops, and treatment for malnutrition. It also includes antibiotics to treat gastrointestinal, respiratory, and urinary tract infections, as well as medication for cholera. 

Save the Children said this delivery was crucial because health facilities in Tawila were dangerously low on medicines just as thousands of displaced families arrived. Urgent restocking was essential to prevent the collapse of maternal and child health services and to address the escalating malnutrition, famine risk, and disease outbreaks in overcrowded displacement sites. 

Dr. Bashir Kamal Eldin, Health&Nutrition Director of Save the Children in Sudan, said: “This delivery comes at a critical moment as humanitarian needs continue to escalate across Darfur, where large-scale displacement and limited access to healthcare are placing children at extreme risk. 

“With this shipment now in Tawila, Save the Children will refill essential medical stocks and support health facilities serving displaced populations. The delivery also strengthens preparedness for future humanitarian access to other areas of North Darfur, including El Fasher, once conditions allow for safe humanitarian movement. 

“We know that timely access to these supplies can mean the difference between life and death for thousands of displaced families.”  

After nearly three years of conflict, Sudan is facing the world’s largest displacement crisis, with more than 12 million people – one fifth of the population – forced from their homes. About 5 million children are displaced.

Save the Children remains committed to delivering life-saving health and nutrition services across Sudan, including mobile clinics, maternal healthcare, and treatment for malnourished children. However, humanitarian organizations cannot meet these growing needs alone. Sustained support from donors and partners is critical to ensure uninterrupted supply chains and enable humanitarian actors to reach communities in the hardest-to-access areas. 

Save the Children has worked in Sudan since 1983 and provides programming for children and families affected by conflict, displacement, extreme poverty and hunger. 

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Save the Children.