From classrooms to camps: The battle to save childhood in wartime Sudan

Report by: Amira Mahjoub / Al-Alaq Center for Press Services for Sudan Media Forum Joint Newsroom

The “Pen Instead of Gun – Children Not Soldiers” campaign revealed a dangerous escalation in the rate of child recruitment in Sudan, confirming that the phenomenon is no longer confined to traditional conflict zones, but has become widespread throughout the country, taking advantage of poverty, displacement and the collapse of the education system.

Professor Mona, a teacher, member of the teachers’ committee, and a campaign member, said the campaign effectively launched with a founding seminar held on December 13, 2025, with the participation of the Sudanese Teachers’ Committee, the Al Jazeera Center for Human Rights, and the Voices of Victims organisation. She described the seminar as the “starting point” for a broad movement against child recruitment.

She added that the symposium discussed the issue from several angles, including the educational dimension, human rights, and international conventions, in addition to field monitoring of the reality of child recruitment, stressing that the actual work of the campaign began virtually and was clearly launched on January 2, 2026.

Mona explained that the campaign is open-ended and has no limit, and will continue until its goals are achieved, foremost among them protecting children from recruitment, preventing their involvement in armed conflict, and stopping this crime, which is a flagrant violation of children’s rights.

The child is not a soldier

 She pointed out to (Al-Alaq) that the campaign carries overlapping messages, based on the fact that the child is not recruited but protected, and that he has the right to security, education and play, and that his natural place is the school and not the camp, and his pen is more important than the rifle.

The campaign stressed that recruiting children is a war crime, and every child who is forced into fighting is a victim of a legal and humanitarian violation, according to international agreements and local laws that affirm that a child is not a soldier and should not be treated as such.

Advocacy tools

The campaign relies on various social media platforms, including Facebook, WhatsApp, X platform, and TikTok, in addition to publishing awareness videos, data, and digital posters, with a focus on delivering messages to the Sudanese interior.

Mona pointed out that while societal awareness exists among some groups, it remains fragile in light of economic exploitation and living pressures, as many families are forced, under the weight of poverty and financial temptations, to accept the recruitment of their sons.

A disturbing reality in the states

She explained that the initial monitoring conducted by the Al Jazeera Center for Human Rights focused on Al Jazeera State, but it later became clear that the phenomenon was widespread in most of Sudan’s states.

She added: “In Blue Nile State, for more than 15 years, the systematic recruitment of children has been practiced, with recruitment camps being set up near boys’ schools, which pushes students to leave school, especially in light of a hostile educational environment and financial incentives and supplies.”

It also revealed that cases of child recruitment in northern Sudan, despite their weak physical condition, were detected due to economic need.

Displaced children: the most vulnerable group

Mona stressed that displaced children are the most vulnerable to recruitment, due to the harsh conditions of displacement, the lack of stability, and the fact that schools are often turned into shelters, as well as the feeling of having no future and no security, which pushes children and their families to look for any means of survival, even if it is through camps.

She added: “The child in these circumstances does not have the awareness of choice, but rather harsh choices are imposed on him due to displacement and war.”

Shocking figures and challenges

Mona revealed that the teachers’ committee has statistics indicating that there are about 12 million children out of school, which creates a fertile environment for child recruitment.

She pointed out that one of the most prominent challenges facing the campaign is the difficulty of safe field documentation, in addition to what she described as the militarisation of education through the introduction of military education curricula in some states.

A call for solidarity

The campaign called on national and international human rights organisations, media professionals, and the international community to stand in solidarity with it, to pressure the parties to the conflict to stop recruiting children, and to provide media and legal support, stressing that raising community awareness through the media represents the first line of defense to protect children from falling into the clutches of war.

The pen and education, not weapons, are for a healthy child.

For his part, Professor (W.A.) at one of the schools in the River State pointed out that the difficult economic reasons, along with political and religious exploitation and wars, have created a fertile environment for targeting and luring children. There are indirect factors that contribute to this, explaining that the luring operations are often carried out through financial inducements and false promises that exploit the needs of children and their families, especially in light of school dropout and weak family supervision, which makes children more vulnerable to exploitation.

He stressed that children who are recruited or at risk of recruitment face multiple forms of abuse, including physical, verbal and sexual exploitation, warning that these experiences may leave deep psychological and behavioral scars, and may drive the child to become an aggressive or destructive personality, at a time when the family is living in a state of fear, loss and a lack of a sense of security.

(W) stressed that the pen and education represent the first line of defense in confronting this phenomenon, through spreading awareness, eradicating ignorance, and informing children of the dangers of recruitment, stressing that community awareness plays a pivotal role in protecting children from falling into the trap of exploitation.

Regarding the role of the family, he called for continuous monitoring of children’s behavior, knowing their friends, and following up on any psychological or behavioral changes, in addition to making the child feel safe and included within the family and society.

He also pointed to the importance of holding seminars and awareness activities within local communities, noting the existence of initiatives led by international organisations, including UNICEF, that contribute to raising awareness and protecting children.

He concluded by emphasising the need to combat child recruitment by tightening laws and setting maximum penalties for anyone who exploits children or involves them in conflicts, while focusing on raising awareness among children about the importance of education and keeping them away from all forms of exploitation and recruitment.

Ban on child recruitment

Children’s rights are human rights, and children should be treated with equality, respect, and dignity, not because they are “the future” or “the next generation,” but because they are human beings, and all human beings have fundamental rights and freedoms from birth.

In 1989, world leaders made a historic commitment to the world’s children by adopting the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and making it part of the international agreement. It became the most widely ratified convention in history and helped transform the lives of children around the world.

The basic principles of the agreement are summarised as follows:

 In an unambiguous manner, the basic human rights that children everywhere should enjoy without discrimination are: the right of the child to survive, develop and grow to the fullest extent, protection from harmful influences, abuse and exploitation, and full participation in family and society.

The Convention was adopted on 20 November 1989 and entered into force in September 1990. The two Optional Protocols to the Convention on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography and on the involvement of children in armed conflict were adopted on 25 May 2000 and entered into force on 18 January 2002. As of 26 June 2008, there were 121 States Parties to the Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict, and as of 25 February 2008, there were 126 States Parties to the Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child obliges States to include provisions in their laws prohibiting the recruitment of children under the age of 18 and raising the age of voluntary recruitment to 18, with penalties for those who violate this.

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The Sudan Media Forum and its member organisations publish this article, prepared by Al-Alaq Center, to highlight the grave consequences of child recruitment, which deprives children of their most basic rights guaranteed by international laws and agreements, thus transforming the lives of children worldwide. This article was prepared by Al-Alaq Center for Press Services.

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