Why are Sudanese refugees returning home despite the civil war?
The Take
Al Jazeera
4.7 • 747 Ratings
🗓️ 22 August 2025
⏱️ 24 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Nearly two and a half years into Sudan’s war, millions remain displaced. Yet some refugees are making the difficult choice to return home, despite the ongoing conflict. UNHCR’s Mamadou Dian Balde explains why Sudanese families are going back, the challenges awaiting them, and the urgent support they need from the international community.
In this episode:
- Mamadou Dian Balde (@mamadou_dbalde), UNHCR’s Regional Director for East and Horn of Africa, and Great Lakes
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by Tracie Hunte, Sonia Bhagat, and Julia Muldavin, with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Melanie Marich, Kissa Zehra, Farhan Saleh Rafid, and our host, Malika Bilal. It was edited by Kylene Kiang and Sarí el-Khalili.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Al Jazeera Podcasts. |
| 0:07.0 | Today, even as the civil war in Sudan rages on, some have decided to go back home. |
| 0:18.0 | We hope that the war will end and that peace and security |
| 0:21.7 | will prevail in Sudan, |
| 0:23.2 | that all people will return |
| 0:24.8 | to their homeland. |
| 0:27.2 | But what awaits them |
| 0:28.5 | and what does Sudan need to rebuild? |
| 0:33.4 | I'm Malika Bilal |
| 0:34.6 | and this is The Take. |
| 0:45.2 | Hey Malika, this is Mamadu Jambalde. |
| 0:51.4 | I'm the regional director for UNIshire in eastern part of African Great Lakes. |
| 0:56.2 | And for the past two years, I also served as the regional refugee coordinator for the Sudan situation. So heavy work, Mamadu, welcome to the take. It has been |
| 1:04.5 | nearly two and a half years since civil war broke out in Sudan. More than 12 million people |
| 1:10.1 | have been displaced. Nearly 25 million |
| 1:12.7 | face dire hunger, and millions are cut off from aid. And so far, attempts to bring this conflict |
| 1:21.1 | to an end have been unsuccessful. So I know that you recently traveled to Sudan. |
| 1:28.3 | You went to the capital and some other places. |
| 1:31.3 | What did you see there? |
| 1:33.3 | I was indeed in a courtroom the first time since the crisis started. |
| 1:39.3 | For me, it was returning to a place where I lived for two years, a younger protection officer |
| 1:47.4 | who was there working for refugees coming from several parts of the continent and been there |
... |
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