The purposes of the CCS are:

1. Provide the strategic directions for WHO interventions aligned with national Health Strategy
2. Provides the strategic basis for the bottom-up planning process and contributes to the health dimension of the UNSDCF/UNDAF, harmonizing WHO’s cooperation with a country in order to achieve the SDGs.
3. Supports the achievement of the SDGs. The CCS underlines WHO engagement to actively contribute to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
4. Supports and reinforces national health priorities, including national SDG targets. The CCS ensures that WHO work at country level responds to national health priorities, including national SDG targets, as well as supporting national health emergency risk assessments, national capacities in emergency risk and disaster risk management, and readiness for emergency response.
5. Strengthens and harmonizes work with partners and other sectors. The CCS provides an opportunity to strengthen partnerships and multi-sectoral approaches to address NHPSP priorities and SDG targets.
6. Aligns WHO work across the three levels of the Organization. The CCS informs and reinforces WHO’s global vision for health as defined in the high-level General Programme of Work (GPW 13), Regional Director’s vision 2023, global and regional strategies. It facilitates advocacy of WHO priorities at country level. The CCS reinforces and informs the health dimension of the UNSDCF/UNDAF as the main instrument for harmonizing WHO’s cooperation in countries with the work of other United Nations agencies and partners.
7. Supports global, regional and sub-regional health frameworks and agendas. The CCS reinforces and informs WHO’s global vision for health as defined in intergovernmental frameworks, regional and sub-regional health agendas.
8. Mainstreams gender, equity and rights into WHO country-level work. The CCS facilitates the integration of the principles of “gender, equity and the right to health” into the work of WHO at country level.
9. Facilitates resource mobilization for health at country level.
10. Ensures that WHO support is adapted to country specificities, changing circumstances and risk environments.

Sudan became a member of WHO in 1956. Since then WHO has been providing technical support in all issues related to health and development, with the main goal of improving the health status of the Sudanese people. WHO works to reduce mortality, morbidity and disability, and to improve health, especially of vulnerable populations. To achieve this goal, WHO focuses on the following strategic approaches:

1. Ensuring adequate preparedness and timely response to health hazards and emergencies through a well-coordinated multi-sectoral approach;
2. Addressing inequity in the delivery of priority health services across the country by targeting the most under-served areas and filling service gaps;

Supporting and strengthening the resilient health system to attain Universal Health Coverage and other related Sustainable Development Goals, while sustaining the institutional capacity of ministries of at national and sub-national levels.

The first Country Cooperation Strategy was formulated in 2002 and followed by the second CCS for the period 2008 – 2013 which has been extended to 2015. The main objective of the second CCS was to support Government of Sudan and partners to accelerate progress towards attaining MDGs targets and respond to the country’s priorities following signing of the Comprehensive Peace agreement (CPA) following decades of civil war in South Soudan[1].

The political context of Sudan has changed dramatically during the past two years, which witnessed the start of the protests, and the progress into changing the regime and establishment of the transitional government.

The impacts of the economic downturn have translated into devaluation of the local currency, increasing inflation, a rising cost of living and shortage of fuel. This situation has affected basic livelihoods and health services, people movements and risks of public health threats and health security hazards particularly, for vulnerable and disadvantaged population. Moreover, Health system has been confronted with rapidly increasing demand generated by the COVID-19 pandemic and other protracted health emergencies and outbreaks. Overwhelming of health system may result in increased both direct mortality from the outbreaks and indirect mortality from other diseases such as communicable and noncommunicable preventable and treatable conditions.

The third CCS is aiming at supporting Government of Sudan and partners to improve health and well-being of people in Sudan and to accelerate progress towards attaining UHC and other related SDGs. The cooperation strategy will be guided and fully aligned with the national priorities of the transitional government, United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDF/UNDAF), WHO General Programme of Work (GPW 13), Regional Director’s vision 2023 and other Sudan’s international commitments.

Development of CCS will be inclusive through involving Federal Ministry of Health, other line ministries and government entities at national and sub-national level, civil society, media, the private sector, academia, donors, development and humanitarian partners and other stakeholders.