Sheikh Mohammed orders humanitarian airbridge from Dubai to Sudan

An emergency humanitarian airbridge to Sudan, transporting essential medical supplies in support of ongoing operations of the World Health Organisation (WHO), was ordered by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

The International Humanitarian City in Dubai (IHC) will facilitate three Boeing 747 cargo flight rotations by the Dubai Royal Air Wing fleet. The three flights will transport 283,805kg of medicine, medical supplies, and health kits to Sudan.

The first of the three flights to Sudan left in the morning of Sunday, October 24, from Dubai International Airport (DXB) to Khartoum, carrying 92,220kg of medicine, medical aid, and health kits.

Meanwhile, the second flight will leave DXB to Khartoum on Wednesday, October 27, carrying 93,097kg of further aid, followed by the third flight which will leave from DXB to Khartoum on October 28 carrying 98,488kg of aid.

منظمة الصحة العالمية تشيد بالدعم الذي يقدمه محمد بن راشد و #دبي لعمليات المنظمة انطلاقاً من المدينة العالمية للخدمات الإنسانية، مع قيام المنظمة بنقل مستلزمات صحية لـ 1.5 مليون سوداني منهم 300 ألف عامل في القطاع الصحي. pic.twitter.com/giNwZ1WcV2

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) October 25, 2021

This airbridge represents the single largest one ordered between the UAE and Sudan. The WHO will deliver much needed medicine and health supplies from its logistics hub in Dubai to Khartoum to address the health needs of 1.5 million people and support the protection of over 300,000 frontline health workers. The shipments valued at more than $2m also include essential pediatric medicine.

The supplies will be immediately distributed upon arrival to health facilities in 19 states across Sudan. WHO’s Dubai Logistics Hub is also deploying technical staff with the supplies to facilitate the operation.

“Sudan continues to suffer from the impact of global supply chain disruptions that affect the transport and delivery of essential medicine. These flights come at a critical time when Sudan is facing higher transmission of waterborne diseases due to the rainy season, as well as increasing numbers of vulnerable populations in need of humanitarian and medical assistance” said Dr Nima Abid, WHO representative in Sudan.

This year, WHO’s Logistics Hub in Dubai has delivered a total of 25 shipments to Sudan valued at $1.4m. In 2020, the hub supported eight lifeline shipments to Sudan valued at $900,000. Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the WHO logistics hub in Dubai has dispatched over $90m worth of health supplies to over 120 countries