Hope Grows Here: How Refugees in Sudan Are Planting Seeds of Survival
At a refugee camp in Sudan, a group of young men turned scarcity into sustainability by launching a tree nursery and waste water-fed gardens that are transforming their community and redefining what refugee-led resilience can look like.
When war erupted in Ethiopia's Tigray region, tens of thousands fled across the border into Sudan, carrying little more than exhaustion and grief.
Many arrived at Tunaydbah Refugee Camp in eastern Sudan, hastily established in January 2021 after the nearby Um Rakuba camp reached capacity.
Four years on, between 20,000 and 25,000 people remain in Tunaydbah.
The camp is a patchwork of weather-beaten tents and a scattering of tukuls — the mud-and-thatch huts that serve as semi-permanent housing. During the rains, water seeps into living spaces, disease spreads quickly, and the fragile health and sanitation systems buckle under the strain.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, followed by the outbreak of the current conflict in Sudan in 2023, shifted global political will and humanitarian focus away from Sudan’s one million refugees, including those living in Tunaydbah.
By 2025, humanitarian budgets had shrunk dramatically. Aid groups left. Basic food rations — already meagre — were slashed. Families regularly do not have enough to eat, and many do not have adequate access to healthcare and protection services. Young people — with little opportunity for education, no jobs, and no clear future — found themselves idle and vulnerable, their despair leaving them open to alcohol, drugs, and violence.
Concerns grew about the impact of the refugee population on the surrounding natural resources. The tension was not between refugees and their Sudanese hosts, but between survival and sustainability. Families, desperate for firewood, stripped the fragile landscape of trees and shrubs, further destabilizing an already harsh environment.
In this moment of uncertainty, the need for hope and sustainable solutions became urgent, and a small group of young men, themselves refugees, decided to rise to the challenge. What awaited them was not sanctuary, but a barren stretch of semi-arid land where the sun scorched the ground and seasonal floods washed away what little stood in its path.
The Tree Nursery Project
The group of young men joined a tree nursery project started by Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) and funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC).
They wanted more than to work as project volunteers, they wanted ownership. They wanted to take the initiative and lead change in their community.
Under the leadership of Yonas Deballkew Tesfamariam and Michael Bahre Asgedom, the group articulated a vision to enhance community food security, safeguard the environment, and foster social cohesion through gardening, tree planting, and the promotion of clean energy.
This vision culminated in the establishment of the Green Community Development Association (GCDA), the first refugee-led organisation to be formally registered in Sudan in two decades.
Refugee-led resilience
Khadija Abdalaziz Abdalla, NCA's Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Project Officer, recognised their potential.
Once they were engaged, these young men, many of whom were university-educated, were highly motivated to use their knowledge and skills to help their community.
With Khadija's mentorship, GCDA navigated the bureaucracy of legal recognition and began reimagining what was possible in Tunaydbah.
After building the nursery with capacity for 5,000 to 18,000 seedlings, NCA handed over the project site to GCDA.
NCA supported GCDA in organising and training community volunteers in seedling production and environmental care, provided vegetable seeds to 300 households, supplied 3,000 tree seedlings (1,000 shade and 2,000 fruit trees), and supported the planting of 20,000 acacia trees to protect the camp from wind and storms.
NCA also helped GCDA to sell their seedlings beyond the limited market in the camp, linking GCDA and seedling buyers in Gedaref, the nearest city.
Using wasted water
Perhaps most innovative was a pilot project that turned wasted water into nourishment.
With very few resources, GCDA demonstrated how wasted run-off water from the camp's 90 water points could be captured for gardening and food production by surrounding homes.
This reduced water waste, helped families grow food, and built resilience. The model is simple, effective, and can be scaled up in Tunaydbah and expanded to other refugee camps and host communities.
The results speak for themselves
Despite having no budget, no office, and no vehicles, GCDA proved the power of building a movement from the ground up. They carried water by hand, organised trainings, and built an ethos of self-reliance.
What began with two volunteers has grown to 36 members, with plans to expand further, include more women, and partner with organisations for funding to support new initiatives.
With support from NCA, GCDA has been able to do the following:
- 500 households now practice homestead gardening using captured wastewater, up from an initial pilot of just three.
- More than 80,000 trees have been planted in and around the camp, reshaping the environment.
- 3,000 seedlings have been sold, creating income for refugee youth.
- 180 households received gas and solar ovens, reducing the need for firewood.
