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Paper short abstract

Drawing on the author’s UNESCO-commissioned consultancy, this paper analyses Sudanese artists displaced to Egypt after the 2023 conflict, using mixed-method data to examine how legal frameworks, livelihoods, and institutional access shape artistic practice, cultural rights,and policy implementation.

Paper long abstract

This paper is based on a consultancy study with UNESCO on Sudanese artists displaced to Egypt following the 2023 conflict. The researcher used a mixed-method approach combining a survey of 70 Sudanese artists in Egypt with Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with a range of stakeholders, including Sudanese artists, local and international cultural institutions, protection NGOs and officials from the Ministry of Culture, providing evidence on how displacement reshapes artistic practice, livelihoods, and career paths.

Drawing on cultural rights and inclusive policy frameworks, the paper analyses the interaction between artistic freedom, legal statutes, livelihood, and access to cultural institutions and education. Although displacement has provided a better degree of artistic freedom compared to Sudan, the findings show that this freedom remains constrained by a lack of work permits, limited educational and professional development opportunities, and unsustainable institutional integration. These structural obstacles undermine artists' ability to continue their artistic practices and contribute effectively to cultural life.

This paper highlights the differential impact on women ( 61% of participants) facing stalled careers, family caregiving responsibilities, disrupted education, and coping with PTSD. By positioning Sudanese artists as actors in the cultural scene within regulatory, economic and governance systems, the paper connects micro-level artistic experience to macro-level policy implementation gaps.

This paper contributes to the ongoing debates on culture in times of conflict, demonstrating how the cultural polices in host countries shape the post-conflict future. It argues for supporting displaced artists through rights-based approaches that sustain cultural life, social cohesion, and long-term peace-oriented development.