ERICC Helpdesk Report _ Reflective Review of Sudans Secondary School Examinations

War erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on 15 April 2023, and the education landscape in Sudan has changed substantially since the outbreak of the war. Current figures estimate a total of 17 million out of 19 million school aged children remain out of school as of December 2024, with over 3.8 million children displaced internally or cross-border, and 18% of schools reportedly used as shelters for the displaced population (Education Cluster, 2024).

On 27 October 2024 the Sudanese Federal Ministry of Education (FMoE) formally announced the decision to administer secondary school examinations for the 2022/23 cohort, with intent to hold examinations announced as early as July 2024. Members of the Local Education Group and Education Cluster encouraged the Federal Ministry of Education to pursue alternative options; however, the FMoE ultimately chose to proceed with examinations in December 2024, offering optional deferral to later cycles for those students unable to take the examinations in December. As a result, members of the international and Sudanese community coordinated a response to address the educational and protection needs of students sitting for the December 2024 examination cycle. ERICC Helpdesk has been requested to conduct a rapid review of events leading up to and during the administration of examinations, an analysis of the coordinated response during the examinations themselves, and the identification of lessons learnt to inform the approach of the education community to future examination cycles.