The Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies (CHS), in partnership with Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), convened a closed workshop in Khartoum to examine how the conflict has affected Sudan’s research and knowledge system and identify priorities for strengthening and rebuilding it. Titled “The Sudanese Research and Knowledge System Amid Conflict,” the workshop was held at the University of Khartoum and brought together representatives of public and private universities, research centres, think tanks, and civil society organisations based in Sudan.
The Khartoum meeting followed an initial consultation held in Doha on 27 June 2026 with Sudanese researchers and academics residing in Qatar. Convening the second workshop inside Sudan enabled the project to draw directly on the experience of institutions and researchers operating under the immediate effects of the conflict. It also provided a clearer picture of how universities and research organisations are attempting to preserve teaching, postgraduate study, research activity, and institutional continuity amid widespread disruption.
Participants described a research system under severe pressure. Damage to university infrastructure, the displacement of researchers and faculty members, unstable funding, interrupted postgraduate programmes, and limited access to data and academic resources have weakened institutional capacity and fragmented research communities. The expansion of online teaching has allowed some academic activity to continue, but unequal access to electricity, internet connectivity, and digital technologies has limited its reach and effectiveness. Discussions also highlighted the weak institutional connection between research and public decision-making. Participants noted that cooperation between universities, public institutions, the private sector, and civil society often depends on personal relationships or short-term projects rather than durable institutional channels. This limits the systematic use of research in policy development and decision-making and weakens the contribution of research to Sudan’s immediate social, economic, humanitarian, and peacebuilding priorities.
Three priorities emerged from the workshop: preserving institutional knowledge, supporting the next generation of researchers, and creating stronger channels between research and policymaking. Participants called for greater cooperation among Sudanese universities and research institutions, including mechanisms to preserve and share research data, publications, and institutional knowledge at risk of being lost during the conflict. They also stressed the importance of supporting postgraduate students and early-career researchers and strengthening methodological, analytical, and policy-writing skills.
The workshop further examined how Sudanese researchers in the diaspora could support institutions inside the country through academic supervision, joint research, training, and sustained institutional partnerships. Participants emphasised that such engagement should respond to priorities identified within Sudan and reinforce the capacity of local institutions. They also identified the need for more reliable and diverse sources of research funding and for institutional arrangements that allow universities to manage partnerships and resources more effectively. The workshop concluded that rebuilding Sudan’s research and knowledge system is essential to restoring institutional capacity and enabling Sudanese expertise to contribute to the country’s recovery. Findings from the Doha and Khartoum consultations will inform the next phase of the project, including further institutional mapping, stakeholder consultations, and the development of practical policy options for strengthening Sudan’s research and knowledge system. They will also contribute to a broader framework for improving the role of locally produced knowledge in policymaking, recovery, and peacebuilding.