Background
Sudan faces escalating social and economic challenges due to the increasing frequency of floods and droughts, driven by growing inter-annual precipitation variability in the Nile basin. These extreme weather events severely impact the water-food-energy nexus, causing widespread property loss, damaging irrigation facilities and water services, and promoting the spread of waterborne diseases.
The Nile River system, with a population of approximately 31 million, is particularly vulnerable. Major Sudanese cities such as Khartoum, Wad Madeni, Singa, Rabak, and Ad Damar, located along the Nile and its tributaries, have a combined population of over 10 million. Many of these cities have suffered significantly from flood disasters in recent decades.
In 2020, Sudan experienced its worst flood in 30 years when the Nile reached its highest water level in a century, exceeding previous records by more than 60 centimeters, leading to the collapse of over 98,000 houses, the loss of more than 97,000 agricultural acres, and significant livestock losses. Numerous buildings and facilities were also adversely affected.
CTCN support
The proposed technical assistance aims to enhance the Flood Early Warning System (FEWS) established by the Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO), which serves Egypt, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Sudan. The enhancements will make the system more suitable for flood management in Sudanese national sub-basins, enabling Sudanese authorities to better prepare for and respond to upcoming floods, thereby increasing the resilience of communities, infrastructure, and economic investments.
To strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources (MoIWR), the TA project includes training national staff and integrating the FEWS with stakeholders and communities in flood-prone areas. This technical assistance will provide the Nile Water Department with essential technological enhancements and capacity-building measures to mitigate flood risks.
The ENTRO FEWS, based on the MIKE OPERATIONS technology, currently covers the Blue Nile, Sobat, and Atbara River basins but requires updates and improved coverage for the Dinder and Rahad sub-basins. The technical assistance will:
- Update the model to include new data, such as land use changes.
- Validate and improve the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model.
- Develop a dissemination component to ensure effective communication of flood warnings
Expected outcome
The objectives, in close collaboration with the Nile Water Department and selected national beneficiaries and stakeholders, are to:
- Assess the existing Flood Early Warning System (FEWS) of ENTRO, including current protocols, procedures, and the institutional framework available to Sudan.
- Expand and enhance the FEWS components, utilizing available data to increase coverage, efficiency, and lead time in the Setit/Atbara, Dinder, and Rahad national sub-basins.
- Train system operators and build the capacity of a broader range of national FEWS product end users to maximize benefits for the country’s disaster management framework.
- Host the system for two years, allowing the Ministry to acquire and install their own hardware, facilitating the transfer of the system to their premises.