SungAh Lee, International Organisation for Migration: Sudan needs us

SungAh Lee, International Organisation for Migration: Sudan needs us

From The Interview by BBC World Service

April 28, 2026 · 23 min

About this episode

SungAh Lee discusses the humanitarian crisis in Sudan and its impact on migration patterns.

“I saw the damage, the loss. The buildings being destroyed, the infrastructure being completely damaged in that area. And it was sad and heartbreaking.” Waihiga Mwaura speaks to SungAh Lee, from the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) about the war in Sudan which has entered its fourth year and has led to one of the worst humanitarian crisis and biggest displacements of people. SungAh Lee recently travelled to Sudan to assess the situation on the ground. She tells us how it felt to return to parts of the country she had spent time in as a child. She explains how current conflicts are changing migration patterns and what impact cuts to government aid budgets are having on people effected by war. Thank you to the Focus on Africa team in its help in making this programme. The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC, including episodes with the head of UNAids Winnie Byanyima, Nigeria’s Information Minister Mohammed Idris, and UN chief Antonio Guterres. You can listen on the BBC World Service on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 0800 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out…

People in this episode

Host: Waihiga Mwaura

Guest: SungAh Lee

Topics covered

  • humanitarian crisis
  • migration patterns
  • war in Sudan
  • government aid
  • displacement

Keywords

  • Sudan
  • humanitarian crisis
  • migration
  • government aid
  • displacement

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: International Organisation for Migration, BBC World Service, UNAids

Places: Sudan

More episodes of The Interview

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Interview podcast page.