Sudan has established media institutions and outlets, but no stable nationwide access system. Since April 2023, nearly 90% of media outlets operating inside Sudan have reportedly stopped working because of conflict, while infrastructure was looted or destroyed and more than 1,000 journalists lost jobs or income. Independent reporting therefore often continues from exile or through digital channels. Sudan News Agency, known as SUNA, is the national news agency and publishes Arabic, English and French material. Radio and television operate through public or state-linked structures, including the Sudanese Radio and Television Broadcasting Corporation. The Telecommunications and Post Regulatory Authority, called TPRA, regulates telecommunications, frequencies and several broadcast-related licences. An FM radio licence generally involves an application, technical and administrative forms, approval from the Private Radio Committee and the Sudanese Radio and Television Broadcasting Corporation, and fees set under the applicable schedule. TPRA also handles licences connected with satellite news gathering, satellite services, studio-to-transmitter links and internet applications. The Ministry of Culture and Information coordinates media and broadcasting matters, while the Press and Publications Council forms part of the legal publishing framework; its current operating reach is not stable across the country. Sudan has no reliably documented nationwide streaming industry or separate local streaming access structure. In practice, people use websites, YouTube, Facebook and other social platforms for audio reports, video reports and livestreams. Social media has become a major channel for news, public information and participation as the press has weakened, but access depends on a working device, electricity, mobile coverage or another internet connection. Estimates for January 2025 counted about 14.6 million internet users, 21.6 million mobile connections and 3.68 million social-media user identities; these figures are estimates, and user identities are not the same as unique people. About 71.3% of the population was estimated to be offline. Access can change quickly. A nationwide telecommunications and internet outage lasted from 2 February to 13 May 2024, and repeated shutdowns of about three hours occurred from 7 to 10 July 2025 during examinations. Further restrictions, local shutdowns, electricity shortages, damaged backhaul and shortages of functioning devices continued to affect access in 2025 and 2026. Radio, television, satellite reception, mobile data, websites and social platforms can therefore provide different levels of access at different times and in different regions. Operator, data and satellite prices vary with the service, market conditions and exchange rates; no dependable uniform end-user price applies across Sudan. Licence fees follow TPRA schedules and depend on the service and licence category. Freedom of expression and press rights exist in constitutional and legal frameworks, but their practical protection is fragmented. The Press and Printed Materials Act 2009, the 2020 amendment to the Cybercrime Law, emergency measures and security practices can create legal or administrative exposure. Publishing material about armed forces or state bodies, or material treated as threatening public security, can carry serious risks. Journalists and media workers have faced killing, abduction, arbitrary detention, torture, disappearance, threats, theft of equipment and editorial offices, checkpoints, forced censorship and self-censorship. OHCHR recorded 11 journalists or media workers killed, 16 arbitrarily detained and 6 disappeared up to 2025. Sudan ranked 161st of 180 countries in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index, with a score of 29.02. Hate speech, ethnic incitement and calls for violence are professionally and legally prohibited, yet they remain widespread. No separate, reliably documented youth-media protection system or nationwide media-literacy regime has been established in the available evidence. Young people therefore generally use the same mobile, internet, radio and television channels as other users, with exposure to disinformation, hate speech, surveillance, sexual content, violent material and unauthorized access to data or devices. No general age limits, fees or youth entitlements should be assumed without checking the specific service or institution. Participation is possible through social-media publishing, video, audio, community reporting and collaborative journalism, but it carries security and connectivity risks. The Sudan Media Forum, established in 2024, brings together more than 20 outlets through a Joint Editorial Room for co-production, verification and multilingual distribution. The Sudanese Journalists Syndicate, Female Journalists’ Network, Radio Dabanga, Beam Reports and Khartoum Media Centre are documented functional actors. UNESCO and partner programmes have supported relocation, training, psychosocial assistance, safety work and training on hate speech and disinformation, but these are project- or donor-based services rather than a general entitlement. A journalist or media organisation seeking support should check current eligibility and availability directly because access, approvals and processing times depend on the authority, region and security situation.
Media in Sudan
Media in Sudan includes newspapers, radio, television, online journalism, streaming and social media. Access is fragmented because conflict has closed or damaged many outlets and communication facilities, while electricity, network coverage, data costs, security and territorial control vary by region. Radio, satellite television, websites and social platforms remain practical ways to receive or publish information, but outages, surveillance, censorship and misinformation create serious risks.
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