Sudanese University Professors Launch Nationwide Strike Over Pay

29 March 2026

Al-Jazirah University

March 29, 2026 (KHARTOUM) – Thousands of professors across more than 30 public universities in Sudan began a comprehensive strike on Sunday to protest deteriorating working conditions and low salaries.

The Sudanese University Professors Committee (Lajsu) initiated the industrial action to pressure authorities to approve a new salary scale and service regulations recommended by a cabinet subcommittee.

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Lajsu reported a success rate of 95% to 100% on the first day of the strike, despite what it described as harassment by security services at several institutions.

Some university administrations attempted to bypass the strike by using external invigilators for exams scheduled before Ramadan after faculty members refused to oversee them.

The committee’s legal wing stated that the strike is a legitimate constitutional right under the 1948 Freedom of Association Convention and Sudanese labour laws. It noted the strike had been deferred several times since 2021 due to national circumstances.

In a later development, Lajsu announced that security forces in Ed Damazin, White Nile State, detained eight professors from Bakht Al-Rida University for participating in the protest.

Those detained included Professor Musa Youssef al-Barr and Professor Walid Abdel Rahman Mustafa, along with six other faculty members and the wife of one of the professors, Islam al-Khair.

The committee confirmed that seven of the detainees were released later on Monday, but Dr Nour al-Daim Yaqoub and his wife remain in custody.

Lajsu held the authorities fully responsible for the safety of the remaining detainees and vowed to continue the open-ended strike until their demands for a fair salary structure are met.