Report

Street Children in Sudan: Victims of a War Without Protection

Follow-ups – Moatinoon
Source: Monte Carlo
Since the outbreak of war in Sudan on 15 April 2023, thousands of children have become the most vulnerable victims of this bloody conflict, amid a war with no end in sight. Among them is a group locally known as “Shammasa”—street children who have found themselves at the heart of the conflict, without protection, social support, or alternatives to shield them from violence, hunger, and exploitation.

The term Shammasa literally means “children of the sun,” yet their reality is far removed from any positive connotation. Most of them are orphans from marginalized areas, living on the streets and surviving through menial jobs such as shoe shining, collecting scrap metal, or even selling cigarettes. The collapse of state institutions has made them easy targets for recruitment and exploitation by armed groups.

An Invisible Group
The Shammasa live outside any system of social protection. They possess no identity documents and are repeatedly exposed to violence, discrimination, and exploitation. Observers note that most of them come from regions that have long suffered from conflict, such as Darfur, the Nuba Mountains, and Blue Nile State.

Field reports indicate that their number in Khartoum alone exceeds 20,000 children. The continuation of the war has played a major role in pushing thousands more into this category, as more than five million Sudanese children have been displaced since the outbreak of the war, according to UNICEF.

Recruitment: From the Street to the Gun
As the conflict between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces intensifies, Shammasa have become among the groups most vulnerable to recruitment, particularly in conflict zones. Field testimonies suggest that some children were forcibly recruited, while others joined in search of money and protection.

A report by Le Monde documented cases of children as young as 14 being recruited, some of whom took part in looting. Social workers confirm that weapons and salaries constitute a powerful lure for adolescents who have known nothing but street life, amid the absence of education, lack of decent livelihood opportunities, and the breakdown of social protection systems.

Drugs and Education: Two Sides of the Crisis
Alongside the war, Sudanese cities have witnessed a widespread surge in drug use, ranging from hashish to synthetic narcotics. Faced with the harshness of street life and the absence of any prospects, drug use has become an easy means for these children to escape an extremely violent and cruel reality.

At the same time, limited local initiatives are attempting to contain this growing crisis. Some child shelter centers provide basic vocational training to dozens of children, while others have managed to return to school following the reopening of schools in some neighborhoods affected by the fighting—efforts aimed at restoring a semblance of normal life that the war had torn away.

According to field reports, teachers point out that the greatest challenge remains the mass dropout of these children from education. In parallel, UNICEF estimates that around 14 million Sudanese school-aged children are currently out of the education system due to the war.

Observers describe these figures as a “ticking time bomb” threatening Sudan at all levels, potentially leading to long-term repercussions for the country’s future.