DƆNÙESÈ Data Center / Women’s Rights Laws by Country / Sudan
East Africa · Country law profile
Sudan: women’s rights and civic space laws
Sudan is not a party to CEDAW and has signed the Maputo Protocol without ratifying it. Reforms in 2019 and 2020 repealed the Public Order law and criminalised female genital mutilation. Marital rape is not criminalised and there is no domestic violence law. The Muslim Personal Status Act 1991 sets no real minimum age of marriage and gives sons twice the inheritance share of daughters. Since the war that began in April 2023, civic space has been rated closed by the CIVICUS Monitor.
At a glance
| Capital | Khartoum (government operating largely from Port Sudan since the 2023 war) |
|---|---|
| Legal system | Mixed system based on Islamic law (Sharia) and English common law traditions; the Muslim Personal Status Act 1991 governs family matters for Muslims |
| Official languages | Arabic and English |
Key indicators
None setMinimum legal age of marriage (2024)
34% (12% before 15)Women married before 18
86.6%FGM prevalence (women 15 to 49) (2014)
32.5World Bank Women, Business and the Law 1.0 index (2024)
20.0World Bank Women, Business and the Law 2.0 legal frameworks score (2024)
Regional and international treaties
| Treaty | Status | Reservations or notes |
|---|---|---|
| Maputo Protocol | signed 30/06/2008; not ratified (AU list dated 19/09/2023) | |
| CEDAW | Not a party (not listed in UN Treaty Collection status) | |
| CEDAW Optional Protocol | Not a party | |
| African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child | ratified 30/07/2005 / deposited 18/07/2008 | |
| ICCPR | accession 18/03/1986 | |
| Kampala Convention | Not signed or ratified (AU list dated 08/07/2024) | |
| AU Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection (Malabo) | signed 15/03/2023; not ratified (AU list dated 02/02/2026) |
Constitution
| Constitution | Constitutional Charter for the Transitional Period, 2019 (its implementation has been disrupted since the 2021 military takeover and the 2023 war) |
|---|---|
| Equality guarantees | Article 49 requires the state to protect women’s rights and to combat harmful customs and traditions that reduce the dignity and status of women. Article 51 prohibits torture and degrading treatment. |
National laws
Gender-based and domestic violence
No specific domestic violence law
Acts of domestic violence are prosecuted only under the general Criminal Act 1991.
Gaps: No protection orders or specialised procedures exist, and victims rarely seek legal remedies.
Source: campaignforjustice.musawah.org
Gender-based and domestic violence
Repeal of the Public Order law (November 2019)
Repealed the former regime’s Public Order law, which controlled women’s movement and dress in public.
Source: universal-rights.org
Rape and sexual offences
Criminal Act 1991, Article 149, as amended in February 2015
The 2015 amendment created a separate definition of rape and delinked it from zina (adultery), which had exposed victims to adultery charges.
Gaps: Marital rape is not explicitly criminalised, and the Evidence Act 1994 still conflates rape and zina.
Source: cmi.no
Rape and sexual offences
Law No. 12 of 2020 amending the Criminal Act 1991 (Official Gazette, 13 July 2020)
Raised the maximum penalty for rape under Article 149 from 10 years to life imprisonment and set the age of adulthood at 18.
Source: loc.gov
Sexual harassment
Criminal Act 1991, Article 152 as replaced in 2020
The 2020 reform replaced the vague offence of indecent and immoral acts with an offence of acts of a sexual nature that amount to harassment, punishable by up to six months’ imprisonment.
Gaps: No workplace sexual harassment law has been documented.
Source: sclo-sd.com
Female genital mutilation
Criminal Act 1991, Article 141A, added by Law No. 12 of 2020
Criminalises removing or mutilating the female genitalia, with up to three years’ imprisonment or a fine. Courts may also close the premises where it took place.
Gaps: No convictions had been recorded according to Musawah, and prevalence remains very high.
Female genital mutilation
State laws: South Kordofan Prevention of Female Genital Mutilation Act 2008; Gadarif Child Law 2009 (Article 13); Red Sea Child Act 2011 (Article 10); South Darfur Child Act 2013 (Article 11)
These state laws banned FGM in their states before the national ban.
Source: fgmcri.org
Female genital mutilation
Child Act 2010, Article 5
Protects children under 18 from all forms of violence and abuse.
Gaps: A specific article criminalising FGM was proposed and then removed from the Act after objections from religious leaders.
Source: fgmcri.org
Harmful practices
Constitutional Charter for the Transitional Period 2019, Article 49
Requires the state to combat harmful customs and traditions that reduce the dignity and status of women.
Source: fgmcri.org
Child marriage and age of marriage
Muslim Personal Status Act 1991, Article 40
Allows a child from the age of 10 to be married with the permission of a judge.
Gaps: There is no minimum age of marriage; the Act permits child marriage where a judge finds a risk of moral delinquency.
Family and personal status
Muslim Personal Status Act 1991 (Articles 17, 33 to 35, 51 to 52, 113 and 136)
Requires an adult Muslim male guardian (wali) for a woman’s marriage and permits polygamy up to four wives. Wives owe obedience to their husbands. Husbands may divorce unilaterally while wives need court grounds or khul’.
Gaps: Mothers lose custody on remarriage, and custody ends at 7 for boys and 9 for girls.
Family and personal status
Passport and Immigration Law and Interior Ministry regulations
Exit requirements linked to the guardianship system require male guardian authorisation for travel by women and children.
Source: africanfeminism.com
Inheritance and succession
Muslim Personal Status Act 1991, Articles 356 and 357
Applies the rule that men generally receive twice the share of women in the same relationship to the deceased.
Source: campaignforjustice.musawah.org
Labour and maternity
Labour Act 1997, Chapter Four (employment of women and young persons)
Prohibits the employment of women in hazardous or arduous work.
Gaps: The World Bank gives Sudan a WBL 2.0 legal frameworks score of 20.0, among the lowest worldwide.
Source: nyulawglobal.org, wbl.worldbank.org
Nationality
Nationality Act, as amended in 2018
Allows Sudanese mothers to pass citizenship to their children.
Gaps: Foreign husbands of Sudanese women cannot acquire citizenship through marriage.
Source: campaignforjustice.musawah.org
Trafficking
Combating of Human Trafficking Act 2014
Criminalises human trafficking.
Gaps: Its definition differs from the Palermo Protocol and it offers weak protection for foreign victims.
Source: cdn.ccprcentre.org
Human rights defenders
Voluntary and Humanitarian Work Act 2006
Governs registration and operation of NGOs and humanitarian organisations.
Gaps: CIVICUS lists it with the National Security Act and emergency laws among measures that restrict civic space.
Source: monitor.civicus.org
Civic space
| CIVICUS Monitor rating | Closed (9/100) |
|---|---|
| NGO and association law | Voluntary and Humanitarian Work Act 2006 |
| Human rights defenders law | No specific law protecting human rights defenders |
| Public order and counter-terrorism | National Security Act and emergency laws |
| Notes | CIVICUS downgraded Sudan to closed, reflecting the conflict since April 2023 in which the warring sides have targeted and killed journalists and humanitarian workers. |
Recent developments
- November 2019. The Public Order law was repealed.
- 13 July 2020. Law No. 12 of 2020 was published, criminalising FGM and raising the maximum penalty for rape.
- 15 March 2023. Sudan signed the AU Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection.
- 2025. CIVICUS downgraded Sudan’s civic space rating to closed because of the impact of the war on journalists and aid workers.
- 16 April 2026. CIVICUS reported that journalists and aid workers continue to face grave risk.
Reforms recommended
Reforms recommended by the African Commission, UN treaty bodies or national organisations, as reported in the sources below.
- Ratify CEDAW and the Maputo Protocol without reservations that undermine their purpose.
- Reform the Muslim Personal Status Act 1991 to set 18 as the minimum age of marriage and end male guardianship over women’s marriage and travel.
- Criminalise marital rape and amend the Evidence Act 1994 so rape is fully separated from zina.
- Adopt a domestic violence law and enforce the 2020 FGM ban with prosecutions and survivor services.
Being verified. RFLD is checking the laws on the following topics against official texts and will add them to this page: land and property, abortion and sexual and reproductive health, girls’ education, political participation and quotas, social protection, access to justice and legal aid, online violence and cybercrime, data protection, older persons, women and girls with disabilities, same-sex relations. Corrections and documents are welcome at programs@rflgd.org.
African Union treaties
Status of 29 African Union treaties as recorded in the official AU status lists published by the African Union Commission. The date of each list is shown: a ratification deposited after that date may not appear yet. 5 of the 13 human rights and governance treaties below are ratified.
Other AU treaties (16)
Sources (22)
- girlsnotbrides.org · sudan
- fgmcri.org · sudan law report v2 (march 2022)
- wbl.worldbank.org · WBL2024 Economy Scores
- au.int · 37077 sl PROTOCOL TO THE AFRICAN CHARTER ON HUMAN AND PEO…
- girlsnotbrides.org · Strategies to End Child Marriage in the Horn Of Africa Li…
- treaties.un.org · iv 8.en
- treaties.un.org · iv 8 b.en
- au.int · 36804 sl AFRICAN CHARTER ON THE RIGHTS AND WELFARE OF THE…
- treaties.un.org · IV 4.en
- au.int · 36846 sl AFRICAN UNION CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION AND …
- au.int · 29560 sl AFRICAN UNION CONVENTION ON CYBER SECURITY AND P…
- campaignforjustice.musawah.org · Sudan Overview Table.docx 1
- universal-rights.org · sudan outlaws female genital mutilation what does it mean…
- cmi.no · 5661 women and girls caught between rape and adultery
- loc.gov · sudan new law amending penal code takes effect
- sclo-sd.com · the astounding amendments to the sudanese criminal act 1991
- africanfeminism.com · discriminatory laws shouldnt have a place in post revolut…
- nyulawglobal.org · Sudan
- cdn.ccprcentre.org · INT CCPR ICO SDN 30106 E
- monitor.civicus.org · sudan
- monitor.civicus.org · africa
- humandignitytrust.org · map of criminalisation
Other countries in East Africa
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Information verified as of October 2026. This page is for information and advocacy and is not legal advice. Laws change: check the official text before relying on it. Part of the DƆNÙESÈ Data Center of the Women Leaders Network for Development (RFLD). See also the Maputo Protocol Hub and the Maputo Barometer.