Sudan has asked the African Union (AU) to reinstate its full membership and end the country’s suspension from participation in the bloc’s activities.

Sudan ambassador’s to Uganda, Ahmed Ibrahim, said that Sudan’s suspension from the African Union had weakened African initiatives aimed at ending the war in the country and enabled external interference.

“Accelerating Sudan’s return to the African family would prevent the foreign interference and, at the same time, pave the way for African solutions to African problems,” Ahmed said on Tuesday in remarks at a symposium in Kampala.

“We are expecting an effective effort of Uganda as a friendly state, particularly President Yoweri Museveni, as a respected African leader, to support and realise the restoration of Sudan’s activities in the African Union,” he added.

The symposium focused on Sudan's situation and was organised by the Pan African Movement in conjunction with the Sudan embassy in Kampala.

AU suspended Sudan’s membership in October 2021 until civilian rule in the country was restored following the seizure of power by the military that deposed a civilian prime minister.

The country plunged into crisis in April 2023 after a fallout between the military and the paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) which resulted into armed conflict that has killed more than 40,000 people, according to United Nations figures, although aid groups say that the true number could be higher.

The conflict has created the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with over 14 million people displaced, disease outbreaks and famine spreading in parts of the country.

The UN’s World Food Program has said it will cut rations in Sudan from January because of severe funding gaps, adding that communities already facing famine will receive only 70% of their usual aid. The agency said that its resources could “fall off a cliff” by April.