A recent Al Jazeera report on the present humanitarian crisis in Sudan highlighted the efforts of local residents to improve the lives of those impacted. The country has been engulfed in civil war since 2023 when two rival factions of the military government commenced fighting. Around 150,000 people have been killed and over eight million have been internally displaced. 30 million people in Sudan are effected by hunger.

Those who can help play their part. Hundreds of people line up outside the home of the Al Amin family who produce 23,000 loaves of bread per day and also provide free medication.

Another example is in Husam Abdelsalam. His own upbringing was one altered by the uncertainty of living in a conflict zone; he initially abandoned the pursuit of a career in music due to the restrictions placed on the population by the military regime when he was a teenager. Many years later, Abdelsalam received the opportunity to study music professionally and has become a talented composer and violinist.

Again faced with an ambivalence due to the return of war, Abdelsalam redirected his creative ability instead of suppressing it. He utilises local crops and ingredients to create nutritious meals that are handed out to those who are in need. As they eat, Abdelsalam plays his violin to uplift those whose lives have been shattered.

Abdelsalam calls himself a “food composer” in addition to being a “music composer”. He is a composer of spirit as well. Power to him.