Clinics across Sudan could run out of essential medical supplies within two weeks due to disruptions caused by the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, according to the charity Save the Children.
The conflict has disrupted shipping routes and airspace, including closures through the Strait of Hormuz, leaving roughly $600,000 worth of medicines stranded in Dubai ports. These supplies are critical for about 90 Sudanese government-run clinics serving 400,000 patients, providing medicines, vaccines, and nutritional treatments, with no local alternatives available.
Willem Zuidema, Save the Children’s global director of supply chain, told Reuters: “We have a couple of weeks to do this rerouting before the country’s stocks run out. The clock is ticking.”
Impact of Supply Chain Disruptions
The stranded shipments include antibiotics, antimalarials, pain and fever medication, and pediatric injectable drugs, which typically arrive via Port Sudan before being transported by road to regions including Darfur.
UN aid chief Tom Fletcher warned that the Middle East conflict is stretching humanitarian supply chains, particularly affecting sub-Saharan Africa and Gaza. Meanwhile, WHO regional director Hanan Balkhy highlighted the growing shortages of medical commodities across Sudan.
Rising transport costs, including a 25–30% increase in container freight rates due to rerouted shipments around the Cape of Good Hope, are compounding the problem. These delays are further worsened by donor budget cuts, with Save the Children’s Sudan program reduced by $4 million to $98 million this year.
Zuidema emphasized the gravity of the situation: “Demand will go up, but the means for us to respond – especially with rising fuel prices – will go down. That’s extremely worrying
