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Sudanese network of volunteer aid groups wins Norwegian human rights award
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on September 17, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on September 17, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
The Sudanese Volunteer Aid Network received a Norwegian Human Rights Award for their courageous efforts in providing aid during Sudan's crisis.
OSLO (Reuters) - A Norwegian human rights foundation gave its annual prize on Wednesday to the Emergency Response Rooms, a Sudanese network of community groups providing aid, for "their courageous work to preserve the most fundamental human right - the right to life".
Four past laureates of the Rafto prize - Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi, East Timor's Jose Ramos-Horta, South Korea's Kim Dae-jung and Iran's Shirin Ebadi - went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
This year's Nobel Peace Prize will be announced on October 10 in Oslo. The Peace Research Institute Oslo, a research institution, named the Emergency Response Rooms as a possible winner.
The Emergency Response Rooms are a loose network that emerged during the civil war that broke out in Sudan in 2023. They have tried to sustain basic services, such as water and power, and distribute food and medical supplies.
"They consist of thousands of volunteers who engage in collaborative, community driven efforts to meet urgent humanitarian needs of others, at great personal risk," the Rafto Foundation said in a statement.
"(They) save lives and maintain human dignity in a place of misery and despair. Their innovative mutual aid efforts through citizen participation contribute to developing a civil society and is essential to building a better future for Sudan."
The conflict between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has created what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with widening pockets of famine across the country.
More than 12 million people had been forced to flee their homes in search of safety, according to U.N. estimates, though some have started to return.
The laureate of the Rafto Prize is awarded a diploma and prize money of $20,000.
(Reporting by Gwladys Fouche in Oslo; Editing by Aidan Lewis)
The Rafto Prize is an annual award given by a Norwegian human rights foundation to individuals or groups who have made significant contributions to human rights.
The Emergency Response Rooms are a network of community groups in Sudan that emerged during the civil war in 2023, providing essential aid and services.
The article refers to the conflict between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces, which has led to what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
According to U.N. estimates, more than 12 million people have been forced to flee their homes in search of safety due to the ongoing conflict.
The laureate of the Rafto Prize receives a diploma and prize money of $20,000.
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