UN Warns of Deepening Crisis as Over 55,000 Sudanese Refugees Flee to Chad

More than 55,000 Sudanese refugees have sought refuge in neighboring Chad this year, severely worsening an ongoing humanitarian emergency that the United Nations warns will deteriorate further without an urgent increase in international funding.

According to the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, arrivals in eastern Chad have accelerated dramatically over the past week, vastly outpacing current support systems. The agency reported on Friday that daily entries through Chad’s border areas of Adre and Tine have surged to 400 people per day, marking a twentyfold increase compared to previous months.

Sudan has remained gripped by civil war since April 2023, following the outbreak of violent conflict between Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti. The conflict has displaced more than 11 million people, triggering the world's largest displacement crisis. Approximately 6.4 million people remain internally displaced within Sudan, while more than 3.5 million refugees and asylum seekers have fled across borders.

Conditions at the transit center in Tine, Chad, are reaching critical levels, currently accommodating over 4,300 individuals who urgently require adequate shelter, clean water, sanitation, and protection services. Data indicates that about 31,000 families lack proper housing, and the vast majority of refugees survive on less than half of the minimum daily water requirement.

The UN stated that it has secured only 20 percent of the $1.6bn required to properly fund relief efforts. Officials cautioned that the catastrophic conditions will worsen unless the international community steps up to bridge the massive $1.28bn funding gap. Without immediate intervention, the UN warns that an increasing number of displaced Sudanese individuals may embark on dangerous journeys toward Europe, following a year that saw more than 14,100 arrivals on the continent—representing a 245 percent increase compared with 2024.