More than 5.1 million Sudanese have returned to their areas of origin since the war began, even as millions remain displaced and basic services across the country struggle to function, the International Organization for Migration said.
IOM said data from its Displacement Tracking Matrix showed that 5,145,165 people had returned to 76 localities across nine states, an increase of about 4% from the previous month.
At the same time, around 8.6 million people remain internally displaced across Sudan, with displaced communities recorded in 185 localities. The figure is about 1% lower than a month earlier and roughly 26% below the peak reached during the conflict.
The agency warned that many families returning home are encountering severely damaged infrastructure, destroyed or damaged housing, closed schools, limited health services and few opportunities to earn an income.
Those conditions could force some returnees to flee again, IOM said.
IOM Director General Amy Pope said the return of more than five million Sudanese reflected what she described as the “courage and hope” of families seeking to rebuild their lives, but stressed that returning home was only the beginning.
Many families were going back to damaged houses, schools that remained shut and health facilities operating at limited capacity, while employment and livelihood opportunities remained scarce, she said.
According to IOM, about 82% of the returnees — roughly 4.2 million people — had previously been displaced elsewhere inside Sudan.
The remaining 18%, or about 930,000 people, returned from other countries.
Egypt accounted for about half of the returnees arriving from abroad, followed by South Sudan with 25%, Libya with 10% and Gulf states with 8%.
IOM called on governments, donors, development partners, international financial institutions and humanitarian agencies to expand basic services, repair infrastructure and support livelihoods in areas receiving returning families.
The agency said stronger support was also needed for host communities accommodating both returnees and people who remain displaced.
Despite the recent decline in displacement figures, Sudan continues to face one of the world’s largest displacement crises, IOM said.
