“We haven’t stopped praying to God”: A mother in a Sudanese IDP camp

“It is the war that forced us to come here,” says Alia*, a mother of two, who fled with her family to a camp for internally displaced people (IDP) in southern Sudan. “We arrived on 22 April 2023 and, up to now, we are going through hardship. The hardship includes war itself because we lost a lot of things. We lost some of our children and our houses. We lack everything because we lost all things in Khartoum.” 

Alia is one of millions of Sudanese people who have been displaced since the start of the war that started in 2023. The crisis stems from a power struggle between the National Army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF); more than 9,000 people have been killed and nearly six million displaced. It has been labelled the world’s largest displacement crisis.  
 

“We are really hungry” 

“As we speak now, we are really hungry,” says Alia. “We need food. All these children here, they are all hungry. It’s hunger that brought them here.” The situation is dire, and with any outsider that comes to visit the camp, there is a desperate hope that the visitors have brought food.

    “Since the establishment of this camp, there has never been adequate food,” Alia explains. “They bring little, and people don’t get satisfied at all. As we are in these tough times, we are praying that God will bring His goodness and also help you so that you will be able to help us.”

The desperation is such that stealing from local farms becomes a temptation. “Sometimes the food on the farms around here tempt us, and if the farmer would find you, it would be an added challenge,” Alia admits.  

Being caught between the hungry cries of your children and possible beatings if you are caught stealing is a difficult place to be for any parent. It’s even more difficult if, like Alia, you are a believer hoping and trusting that God will somehow make a way so you can feed your children without having to steal.  


 

Many needs 

As with many IDP camps Open Doors teams have visited in the past year, sickness is widespread. “There are many diseases, we fall sick, we need medicine to cure us and our children,” Alia says. “We also need schools for our children. We have so many challenges and pray that, what I say, God will hear and see my tears due to this situation and war. We need water. We also need to be helped to have latrines, so that every house would have a pit latrine.”  

Like so many parents in IDP camps, Alia wants a better life for her children. She wants them to go to school, to live peaceable lives and freely worship God. “The coming generation should not be the same as this generation. There should be positive changes. These children need to be taught to be good citizens. The school will instil in them education as well as discipline – this will help them in their future. They will be organised in their lives.”  
 

“God is with us day and night” 

Despite the hardship and suffering, Alia still puts her hope in God. “Without patience, one would not endure, but we thank God we are still alive,” she says. “We are enduring, and we have put God first to help us. We have not forgotten about God because He is with us always, day and night.”

  “We haven’t stopped asking and praying to God,” she continues. “And we know the challenges are heavy. I don’t have much, and I couldn’t have been able to say much without God. Without God, we will do nothing. We’ve put everything to God, the Creator of heaven and earth. We are hopeful that God will bring blessings. We also pray for you, that God may use you to help us, because we are defeated, and our hearts are broken.” 
 

More than 3,000 families receive aid 

Delivering relief aid to those who have fled the war has been nearly impossible. In many parts of Sudan, intense fighting, general insecurity and restrictions on humanitarian agencies have prevented the delivery of relief aid.  

   But we serve a God with Whom all things are possible. Earlier this year – thanks to your support – Open Doors local church partners were able to deliver life-saving relief aid to 3,000 families made up of 20,640 individual believers, including Alia and her family. Each household received 5kg of sorghum, 1kg of salt, two bars of washing soap, two litres of cooking oil and a small amount of financial support.

To Alia, prayer is also vital. “I am still crying out, on behalf of my brethren. We pray that God will bring us peace. May God bring peace and console those who lost their loved ones.”  


 

Stop the violence. Start the healing. 

When Open Doors partners spoke to Alia, the camp where she and her family are staying was home to 20,000 registered IDPs. But her situation isn’t limited to Sudan. A displacement crisis is occurring across sub-Saharan Africa, with over 16.2 million Christians displaced by violence and conflict. 

Through the Arise Africa campaign, you can stand with Alia and your African church family to help stop the violence and start the healing. 

*Name changed for security reasons