Sudan Media Forum: Joint News Room
By: Al Tagheer Newspaper
A newborn in Mayerno, Sennar, has died from anaemia linked to his mother’s own untreated condition, who tragically succumbed to the illness just three days later, according to Sultan Talal, a volunteer in Mayerno, Sennar. The infant and his mother are among many whose lives have been cut short by a health crisis gripping the region
“This mother leaves behind three daughters, all now suffering from anaemia,” Talal said, adding that hunger, malaria, and cholera are widespread in Mayerno (Maiurno). Deaths among pregnant women, children, and those afflicted with malaria and typhoid are alarmingly common, exacerbated by severe shortages of medicine and the inability of many to afford treatment.
“I have orphaned children aged 13, 12, and 8,” one woman told Al Tagheer newspaper. “Our circumstances are dire; my husband is deceased. We desperately need help; my children are anaemic.”
Mayerno is located 400 kilometres south of Khartoum on the west bank of the Blue Nile. It is about 17 kilometres from Sennar town and 70 kilometres north of Singa, the state capital. Its original population is estimated at 62,000 people, with 20 neighbourhoods. With the return of displaced people, the population has reached approximately 70,000.
Residents and displaced people in Mayerno are facing a severe humanitarian crisis, worsened by the closure of community kitchens, medicine shortages, and a cholera outbreak that has killed more than 300 people.
“The Ministry of Health has abandoned its responsibilities..” -Omar Arabi, Mayerno Emergency Room member
Mayerno’s only hospital, a rural facility partially upgraded to specialise under the Ministry of Health, is now under the control of the Mayerno Emergency Room due to the ongoing war. After the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) entered Sennar, the hospital was forced to close. It recently reopened thanks to the Emergency Room’s efforts, but the pharmacy only resumed operation in mid-November.
Residents complain about the high cost of medicines and the lack of free treatment. Due to scarce supplies and liquidity shortages, the Emergency Room is forced to prioritise providing meals for hospital staff and covering operational expenses.
Since August, the cholera outbreak has killed more than 300 people in Mayerno, in addition to deaths from malaria, malnutrition, and lack of access to treatment.
“The Ministry of Health has abandoned its responsibilities,” Omar Arabi, a member of the Mayerno Emergency Room, told Al Tagheer. This led the Mayerno Emergency Room to establish a cholera isolation centre with its own limited resources. “Cholera patients are treating themselves with their own resources. The cost of one [treatment course] has risen to 7,000 Sudanese Pounds (SDG).”
He added, “In our area, there have been many deaths among the elderly. In less than a month, most of those aged 60 or older have died, as well as deaths among children.”
Mayerno is also battling a malaria outbreak. Access to treatment is difficult due to the high cost of medicines. People contract malaria multiple times due to insufficient vaccine doses. The cost of artemether/lumefantrine tablets, sold under the trade name Coartem, is SDG5,000 for initial treatment, after which patients require expensive artesunate injections, unaffordable for most.
Arabi said the Emergency Room is seeking funding sources. He mentioned a fundraising effort supported by Sudanese expats from the region, but added their donations were insufficient to run community kitchens and provide treatment. He warned that the southern part of Mayerno has only two sacks of lentil porridge left in the community kitchen to feed five neighbourhoods, “an impossible task, as each neighbourhood has three community kitchens.
“Unfortunately, Mayerno as a whole has not received any relief convoy since the war entered Sennar.”
Farming disrupted
Several factors have contributed to the closure of community kitchens in Mayerno, including high costs for food, fuel, transportation, and cooking. The price of a sack (around 100kgs) of lentil porridge, a staple food, has reached over SDG300,000. The price of wheat has reached SDG50,000 per kilogram (SDG350,000 per sack), while a sack of sorghum costs SDG140,000.
Since 2023, most of Sennar’s agricultural projects have ceased, halting production. Other factors contributing to the failure of the agricultural season include fuel shortages, forcing farmers into manual labour.
Residents and displaced people in Mayerno now rely on community kitchens, which have completely shut down. Most residents have been unable to leave since the RSF entered the area. Those who fled to El Gedaref have returned, putting further strain on community kitchens.
This report is published simultaneously on the platforms of media institutions and organizations that are members of the Sudan Media Forum.
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Source: dabangasudan
