WHO chief vows to mobilise international efforts to support Sudan's health system

Khartoum: Visiting World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus vowed to mobilise international efforts to support Sudan's health system, according to a statement by the Sudanese Health Ministry.

Sudan needs more support from partners in the health field, the WHO chief said following talks with Sudan's Health Minister Haitham Mohamed Ibrahim in Port Sudan in eastern Sudan, Xinhua news agency reported.

Ibrahim said Tedros' visit will strengthen the relations between Sudan and the WHO, which "has made great efforts in providing technical and material support," according to the statement.

Also on Saturday, Deputy Chairman of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council Malik Agar received Tedros in Port Sudan, during which he briefed the WHO chief on the health and humanitarian conditions in the country, according to a statement issued by the council.

Media outlets reported that Tedros arrived in Sudan earlier on Saturday for a visit, during which he is set to meet senior Sudanese officials and UN representatives, and inspect health facilities and shelters for internally displaced people.

The Sudanese Health Ministry said Saturday that recent heavy rains hitting parts of Sudan have killed 205 people, while the country has registered 5,081 cholera cases, including 176 deaths.

Since April 15, 2023, Sudan has been embroiled in a deadly conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, resulting in the loss of at least 16,650 lives.

An estimated 10.7 million people are now internally displaced in Sudan, with approximately 2.2 million others seeking refuge in neighboring countries, according to the latest UN data.