Globally, several socioeconomic and livelihood activities have been disrupted by lockdown measures to control COVID-19 spread since it was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization on 11 March 2020[1, 2]. Such disruptions have further strained the already weak health systems of low and middle income countries [1–3]. In Africa, Sudan was among the first countries to report the first cases in early March 2020 [4].
Sudan is the second largest country in Africa with a population of over 40 million people, and home to refugees from South Sudan, Somali, Eritrea, Central African Republic, Syria, Chad, Yemen, and Ethiopia [4–6].
South Kordofan one of the18 States of Sudan, is located in the South Central region of Sudan, with an estimated population of 2.5 million people [7]. It is a wide conflict affected State bordering South Sudan in the South. The State has experienced chronic poverty worsened by the protracted conflict in the region that has displaced over 200 000 people and led to extensive destruction of infrastructure [7, 8].
Besides COVID-19, South Kordofan has previously been affected by epidemics such as yellow fever, chikungunya and dengue fever which have further strained the health system [9, 10]. An inter-agency assessment report done in May 2020 in the internally displaced people’s camps showed overcrowding, poor water supply and inadequate medicines and limited health workers which are risk factors for COVIS-19 spread [11].
With the current ongoing peace talks between the new government and the rebels in the region [12], demand for these services will likely increase as more people are expected to return to the State. Thence a need to effectively plan for the limited resources to ensure proper service delivery in terms of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), health services, and nutrition on top of the ongoing second wave of COVID-19.
Rural areas in Africa such as South Kordofan, which make up the largest part of Africa have been given less attention in the fight against COVID-19 compared to urban areas [13]. With such little attention, these areas continue to face challenges such as; inaccessibility due to poor road network, insecurity, inadequate health workers, health facilities, and COVID-19 diagnostic services [13, 14]. Of the 18 Sudan States, South Kordofan is among the least under resourced which greatly limits access and provision of essential services [15]. It is therefore crucial to give more attention to these areas to ensure equitable access to care, universal health coverage and above all, enable successful containment of COVID-19.