Amid widespread confusion and deep concerns, Sudan’s secondary certificate exams began on Saturday in select parts of the country and abroad. However, approximately 157,000 students from regions under the control of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) were unable to sit for the tests, raising fears of an unprecedented educational divide.
According to the Ministry of Education, over 343,000 students—around 70% of the approximately 500,000 registered candidates—are expected to take the postponed 2023 exams. This figure may decrease further due to the loss of thousands of seating numbers and the postponement of exams in South and West Kordofan. Official statistics confirm that 157,000 students were excluded from sitting for their tests due to the ongoing war.
Education has become a significant casualty of the war, which has raged for over 20 months. The government, now operating out of Port Sudan, resolved to conduct the exams in areas under army control, despite RSF objections. The RSF warned that this decision could have dire consequences for thousands of students and exacerbate divisions within the country.
Fears are mounting over potential attacks on exam centers, especially in conflict-ridden areas like Karari in Omdurman, north of Khartoum, where intense artillery shelling has persisted. Similar concerns extend to other regions near the conflict zones.
The Ministry of Education, however, assured that robust security measures have been implemented to protect centers in safer states, including Northern State, River Nile, Gedaref, Kassala, and North Kordofan.
Qareeb Allah Mohamed, the acting Minister of Education in Khartoum State, told Asharq Al-Awsat that seating numbers had been issued to all students wishing to take the exams. He affirmed that all necessary preparations were completed to accommodate candidates in Khartoum and other states.
Sami Al-Baqer, spokesperson for the Independent Teachers’ Union, criticized the decision of the Port Sudan-based government to conduct exams under the current circumstances. He argued that poor organization and timing had effectively denied over 60% of students their right to participate.
He held the government fully responsible for the potential consequences of its decision, stating that these exams pose risks to students, teachers, and the country.
Union statistics indicate that tens of thousands of students across eight states—Darfur, Greater Kordofan, parts of Khartoum, Gezira, and other insecure regions—are unable to sit for the exams.
Students in RSF-controlled areas were not the only ones affected. Authorities in Chad also declined to host exams for approximately 13,000 students from Sudan’s Darfur region, which borders Chad.
Ahmed Khalifa, Sudan’s acting Minister of Education, had previously announced that students unable to sit for these exams would have another opportunity in March, with plans for additional exams to ensure their integration into the same academic cohort.
Since the outbreak of war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF in April 2023, education has been entirely disrupted in conflict zones, while classes have resumed in safer areas.
According to UNICEF, the ongoing war has prevented 12 million Sudanese students at all educational levels from continuing their studies.
