Displaced young Sudanese turn to entrepreneurship amid war-driven economic collapse

What happened

Al Jazeera Sudan reports that young Sudanese displaced by the country's civil war are turning to entrepreneurship and small-scale businesses to survive economic hardship. Yousra Hussein, a woman displaced from Nyala to Sennar and then Kassala, used to run a women’s empowerment initiative but has had to start over multiple times due to the spread of fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces.

Outside Brief is treating this as a source-led account. Any disputed responsibility, casualty figure, battlefield claim or single-source assertion should be treated as unconfirmed/hearsay unless confirmed by another reliable source or a named official. The report details how Sudan’s war has upended lives and livelihoods, with large parts of the population displaced and unable to find formal employment. A 2024 joint UNDP and IFPRI report cited by the source found that 31 percent of surveyed urban households had been displaced, full-time employment halved, and households reporting no income rose from 1.6 percent pre-war to about 18 percent during the conflict period.

Economic strain is severe, with World Bank estimates indicating extreme poverty rose from 33 percent in 2022 to 59 percent in 2025, as government control zones see modest growth but fail to halt widespread hardship. In this strained environment, young people’s education and livelihoods have been severely disrupted, pushing many into informal and entrepreneurial work without adequate skills or institutional support.

Known from the source

• Sudan’s civil war began in April 2023 involving the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces.
• Yousra Hussein fled Nyala to Sennar, then to Kassala due to spread of fighting.
• 31 percent of urban households surveyed in 2024 were displaced.
• Full-time employment in surveyed urban areas halved since before the war.
• Households reporting no employment or income rose to about 18 percent by 2024.

What remains unclear

The report notes efforts by international organizations and the Sudanese government to equip displaced and youth populations with entrepreneurial training. The International Labour Organization’s i-UPSHIFT programme has provided training and business incubation to 500 youths in Kassala, including many internally displaced persons. Sudan’s Ministry of Youth and Sports has also launched vocational and innovation-focused initiatives, including youth conferences emphasizing skills like AI and agricultural waste usage.

What remains unclear: Confirm whether the central claim is corroborated; until then treat it as unconfirmed/hearsay. Verification of displacement percentage and employment statistics from original UNDP and IFPRI report. Confirm World Bank poverty data and timeline. Corroborate scale and outcomes of ILO’s i-UPSHIFT programme and Sudan Ministry of Youth initiatives.

Evidence note

Outside Brief has kept this brief source-led and attributed. Claims should be read alongside the original source linked below.

Original source: Al Jazeera Sudan. Open the source.