About Giving Island
Delivering humanitarian medical aid to Sudan — with dignity, accountability and care.
Who we are
Giving Island is a registered Northern Ireland charity (CCNI 108514) delivering humanitarian medical aid to Sudan — principally stoma care and urostomy supplies for patients who have lost access to them. Supplies are collected across Northern Ireland and shipped by container for distribution through trusted partners on the ground. Alongside this, we deliver clinical training for healthcare professionals in Sudan and bring together the Sudanese diaspora community in Northern Ireland.
Our story
Giving Island grew from a simple commitment: to stand by people in Sudan who lack access to essential medical care. We were registered as a Northern Ireland charity in April 2022, but our roots reach back further — our volunteers have served as a presence on the ground in Sudan since 2020.
In our earlier years, our work centred on training and clinical education — equipping nurses and healthcare professionals in stoma and colorectal care — while we also sent stoma care supplies to patients who needed them. Building lasting local skill was at the heart of what we did.
The outbreak of war in 2023 changed everything. Pharmacies and medical supply chains across Sudan were devastated, clinical contacts were displaced, and patients who depend on stoma and urostomy supplies were suddenly left without them.
We responded by scaling up our supply work dramatically — from a smaller, supplementary effort into our primary mission. Collecting donations across Northern Ireland and working through trusted organisations on the ground, we now ship supplies by container to patients across Sudan.
Today we have delivered our largest consignments yet, with more in preparation. We remain committed to rebuilding our clinical training as conditions allow — and to supporting the Sudanese community here in Northern Ireland, whose part in this work has become a powerful story of its own.
Our impact to date
We have delivered multiple shipping containers — thousands of cartons of stoma supplies — to a growing number of patients across Sudan.
How we are run
Giving Island is an unincorporated association governed by its Constitution, adopted on 18 April 2022 and registered with the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland. The charity is managed by a board of three trustees, who meet formally through the year to review progress, assess the charity’s response to the crisis in Sudan, approve shipments and partner agreements, and set future strategy.
Our people
In Northern Ireland, two dedicated community volunteers provide the majority of the hands-on work of collecting, sorting and packaging supplies. In Sudan, the charity is represented by a network of volunteers who have served as our local presence since 2020, operating across several cities — receiving and accounting for supplies, maintaining records, organising training, and acting as the vital human link between patients, clinicians and the charity. For their safety, these individuals are not named. The trustees record their profound gratitude to these volunteers, who have undertaken real personal risk in service of our humanitarian mission.
We are also proud of the legacy of our pre-war training: healthcare professionals across Sudan who continue to apply the skills they gained, often in extremely difficult conditions.
Our public benefit
- Vulnerable patients in Sudan who lack access to essential stoma care and medical supplies after the destruction of supply chains by the conflict.
- Healthcare professionals in Sudan who have lost access to training and peer support.
- The Sudanese diaspora in Northern Ireland — offering community integration, social support and a sense of purpose, particularly to those affected by the conflict.
- The wider Northern Ireland community — providing a structured, meaningful outlet for charitable giving and volunteering.
Registered Northern Ireland charity · CCNI 108514 · since 18 April 2022
Supporting our work
Giving Island achieves a great deal with very little — an efficient, in-kind model, partner-funded logistics, and volunteers who give their time freely, so support reaches patients with very little lost to overheads. As a registered, independently examined charity, we warmly welcome funders, partners and supporters who would like to help us reach more patients and ready our next shipment.