Diabetes care in Sudan: emerging issues and acute needs

Sudan is the largest country in Africa and one of the poorest in the world. Its population is estimated at around 37 million; the capital Khartoum, with approximately 6 million inhabitants, is growing rapidly. There are hundreds of ethnic and tribal divisions and language groups within the two distinct major cultures in Sudan – Arabs with Nubian roots and non-Arab Black Africans. The lack of effective collaboration among these groups continues to be a serious problem. In the last 50 years, the cycles of civil war, drought and political instability have placed Sudan among the world’s five least developed countries. Government spending on health services constitutes a negligible portion of the national budget; most of this is dedicated to tackling communicable diseases. As Awad Mohamed Ahmed reports, although non-communicable diseases are given a low priority, the human and economic costs of diabetes continue to grow unchecked.
Africa, ethnic and tribal divisions, diabetes ketoacidosis, fatalism, low-cost solutions