PRESS RELEASE

Sudanese Women Leaders Demand Protection, Peace, Justice

Sudanese Women-Centered  Peace and Justice Convening- Advancing Lasting and Sustainable Peace through a Pan-African and Gender-Responsive Approach

As the world marks International Women’s History Month, Sudanese women have unified their voice by issuing an urgent call to the international community to act now to protect civilians, hold perpetrators accountable for atrocities, and ensure women’s inclusion, participation, and leadership in all efforts to end Sudan’s devastating crises. 

This call came as the outcome of a landmark convening, “Sudanese Women-Centered  Peace and Justice Convening” organized by Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG), which brought together Sudanese women civil society leaders, human rights defenders, and activists, representing the diverse geographical, occupational, age, and ethnic composition of Sudanese society. The gathering brought together 52 women-led organizations’ representatives from across the country and the diaspora— from Port Sudan, Kassala, Khartoum, White Nile, Blue Nile, South Kordofan, all states of Darfur, Gadarif, Eljazeera,  Sinar, the US, and Europe— to articulate their issues and develop a collective and comprehensive strategy for peace, justice, and accountability.  Many of the participants have survived genocide and lost family members to it, but were determined to rise beyond their circumstances to uplift their community and contribute to a lasting solution.  Participants deliberated on Sudan’s diversity and emphasized the need for understanding the complexity of Sudan’s problems and issues affecting women at various levels.  The convening also strategically brought prominent women from other regions in Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia to strengthen solidarity, share experiences and expertise, and mobilize support for the Sudanese women’s advocacy efforts to amplify their voices.

The objective of the convening was to create a safe space, promote ownership, recognize the expertise of Sudanese women, address the dividing factors, and consolidate the unity of purpose around nationally unified priorities and agenda for peace and justice in Sudan. 

For three days, Sudanese women gathered with purpose, deliberated effectively,  listened, strategized, and shared lessons from years of experience fighting for peacebuilding, stability, and justice. They were joined by women leaders from other conflict-affected regions—including Namibia, Kurdistan-Iraq, and Myanmar— which brought hard-earned insights on resistance, peace building,  justice, and rebuilding societies after war. Together, they created a rare and powerful space for collective reflection and action. Representatives of IGAD, UN Women, INGO partners, and stakeholders joined the convening to facilitate discussion, but allowed the space for Sudanese women to take charge. 

The participants noted that the convening was timely and desperately needed, emphasizing that it came at a time when Sudan is facing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Millions have been displaced, with an unprecedented famine and widespread and systematic sexual and gender-based violence. The civilian protection crisis is deepening, with death and destruction of homes, services, infrastructure, and loss of lives at an alarming rate. Yet Sudanese women—despite the horror of bearing the brunt of the violence—remain at the forefront of lifesaving and humanitarian response. They work across the country, organizing community protection networks, delivering emergency aid,  providing counseling and care for survivors, and documenting human rights violations to keep the international community informed.

Despite their exceptional leadership, Sudanese women remain largely excluded from peace negotiations, ceasefire discussions, and international decision-making processes, including allocation of funds and humanitarian interventions. Participants at the convening stressed that this exclusion is not accidental but rather strategic. The repeated exclusion has undermined efforts to bring sustainable peace to Sudan.  “Peace in Sudan cannot be negotiated without women, and justice for victims cannot be achieved without accountability,” participants affirmed.

The discussions also included a comprehensive analysis of Sudan’s crisis and its disproportionate impact on women, examining both its root causes and the current realities on the ground. Participants collectively identified several critical issues: the systematic nature of attacks on civilians, the scale and severity of the humanitarian crisis, and the widespread use of rape and sexual violence as tools of war. These patterns reflect longstanding and repeated atrocities that constitute serious international crimes—including genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity—often marked by ethnically targeted violence and sustained by prolonged impunity.

There was a strong consensus that Sudanese women are among the most affected by the ongoing conflict, yet remain systematically excluded from decision-making processes. Participants emphasized that this exclusion is both unjust and unsustainable, and must end immediately.

The convening was concluded with strategic priorities divided into short -term, medium-term, and long-term, and post conflict priorities. The priorities were accompanied by an advocacy and outreach strategy to facilitate sustained engagement with regional and international actors and to ensure women’s voices and priorities are integrated into all initiatives about resolving the crises in Sudan

Key Recommendations and  Calls to Action: 

• An immediate and verifiable ceasefire to halt attacks on civilians and the destruction of civilian infrastructure.
• Unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid with the creation of safe and non-discriminatory humanitarian corridors to allow the delivery of food, medical care, and lifesaving assistance across all regions of Sudan.
• Civilian protection with emphasis on protection of women and girls and support for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, including access to healthcare, psychosocial services, and safe spaces.
• Full and meaningful participation of women at all levels of decision-making, including in humanitarian intervention, peace negotiations, ceasefire monitoring, accountability, and transitional justice processes, with at least 50% percent representation of women in decision-making bodies.
• Accountability for serious international crimes, genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity through independent investigations and mechanisms to prosecute perpetrators.
• Need for the Sudan crisis to be addressed through an atrocity prevention lens that recognizes the harm done and guarantees the non -repetition of atrocity crimes 

Participants emphasized that sustainable peace will only be possible when those most affected by the conflict—particularly women, survivors, and displaced communities—are central to shaping Sudan’s future.

As the international community celebrates women’s achievements on International Women’s Day, Sudanese women leaders are calling for more than symbolic recognition. They are urging the national, regional, and international policymakers and humanitarian actors to move beyond statements of concern and take concrete action to protect civilians and support women-centered peace and justice initiatives. Understanding that Sudanese women have expertise, knowledge of their issues, and the ability to lead and contribute to lasting solutions is imperative for their meaningful participation. They are not seeking merely to be consulted, but to be included and supported with resources and the opportunity to lead. They are asserting their rightful place as leaders in building a future for Sudan grounded in justice, dignity, and lasting peace.

Various testimonies were shared about the uniqueness of the convening by participants, with two prominent women leaders stating that, “This convening is exceptional in its methodology, scope and context- we have been to thousands of gatherings over the years and this is the only time we felt that we are not here to just tick the boxes but to take charge and ownership and the safe space we had has enabled us immerse in ourselves and deep dive into our issues like never before; it has effectively established a foundation for unified women agenda that we must sustain.”   

About the Convening

The Sudanese Women-Centered  Peace and Justice Convening was organized by the Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG) in partnership with and with generous support from the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), the Defend Defenders, the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC), and the Advocacy Network for Africa (AdNA). The convening brought together Sudanese women leaders, civil society organizations, and international allies to develop a unified women’s agenda and a coordinated advocacy strategy for peace and justice in Sudan.   

Media Contact: policy@darfurwomenaction.org