Over the past four decades the cities and towns of Sudan have experienced dramatic population growth. Urbanisation has occurred in a context of poor governance, decreasing job opportunities, deepening social and economic insecurity and conflict-induced displacement. Growing numbers of poor and vulnerable urban dwellers live in abject poverty, are vulnerable to a range of daily protection threats and face acute challenges in relation to access to livelihoods, basic services and land.

Presenting case studies from Khartoum, Juba, Nyala and Port Sudan, this meeting series by the Humanitarian Policy Group at the Overseas Development Institute explores the phenomenon of urbanisation and its drivers in different parts of Sudan, and analyses its social, environmental and economic consequences, with particular attention to urban livelihoods, as well as infrastructure and the provision of basic services.

In the first meeting, the speakers will reflect on the challenges of urbanisation in Khartoum and Juba.Hun­dreds of thou­sands of dis­placed South­ern Sudanese have grad­u­ally returned from the North since the sign­ing of the Com­pre­hen­sive Peace Agree­ment (CPA) in 2005, putting huge pressure on infrastructure and resources. In cities such as Juba, which has almost trebled its population, further large influxes of people following the referendum on Sudan’s future in January 2011 will only exacerbate humanitarian needs.