Federal Ministry of Health
The Federal Ministry of Health is the government body responsible for health affairs in Sudan, and its headquarters are in Khartoum (Nile Street, west of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Khartoum, P.O. Box 303 according to its official website), and its official website is www.fmoh.gov.sd. It is one of the oldest ministries: it was established in 1949, seven years before the country's independence, and the first Minister of Health was Ali Badri — according to encyclopedias. The roots of health organisation go back to the beginning of the twentieth century: in 1905 the Medical Department and the Clean Health Council were established, and in 1924 the Sudan Medical Services were established with a director responsible for all of Sudan.
The ministry works within a three-tier federal system of government: the Federal Ministry at the top — it sets policies and strategic plans, coordinates the efforts of national and international actors, provides technical support to the states, and monitors the performance of the health system — then the state ministries of health responsible for planning and implementation at state level, then the localities that provide direct service (according to World Health Organization documents). The structure of service delivery is hierarchical: teaching and specialised hospitals (tertiary care) at the top, then general hospitals in the states (secondary), then primary health care facilities at the base.
Coordination between the Federal Ministry and the state ministries takes place through the Council of State Ministers of Health, and the tasks of the Federal Ministry include — according to a Sudanese academic study — strategic planning, training, and external relations and attracting support for federal and state projects.
Prominent national institutions are linked to the ministry: the National Medical Supplies Fund, the National Council for Drugs and Poisons, the National Blood Transfusion Centre, and the Sudan Health Observatory — according to the links of the official website itself.
(Sources: The official website of the Federal Ministry of Health, fmoh.gov.sd; English Wikipedia, "Ministry of Health (Sudan)"; World Health Organization — health systems document; United Nations ESCWA archive)
— Editorial Team