The United Nations has described the humanitarian situation in Sudan as one of the world's worst hunger and displacement crises, as war continues to rage across the country, with atrocities reportedly committed on both sides and famine declared in certain regions.
The war has caused more than 13 million Sudanese to flee the country.
Agila Omer and her daughter Lena, originally from Khartoum but now living in Kilkenny, had to abandon their home with little more than the clothes on their back.
"I was working as a special needs teacher and my husband as a doctor. My kids were in an international school and we were living a peaceful, happy life. When the war erupted two years ago, there was a feeling of fear and sense of helplessness as a parent," Ms Omer said.
"Leaving our house without taking anything with us was devastating and horrendous. Each of us took only a backpack. We left money. We left gold as well. We took nothing with us," she added.
Ms Omer also spoke of how Sudanese people feel abandoned by the international community in their time of immense suffering and need.
"With all the news that we are getting, I just can't feel any hope... It's really far away"
"We think that the war has been ignored by the world, not forgotten. It's really sad. Sometimes I wake up at night and I feel like I'm in my bed in Sudan," she said.
"It took me a while to realise that we left our house and our lives. I haven't seen one of my sisters in two years. It's really hard on me and my kids."
The international community responded yesterday, with the EU pledging more than €522 million to address the crisis, the UK contributing €140m aid and Germany putting up some €125m.
However, Ms Omer said she finds it very difficult to maintain hope for the future of her country.
"With all the news that we are getting, I just can’t feel any hope. This is hard for me to say, but I can't see it now. It's really far away."
Ms Omer's daughter Lena was just about to finish secondary school when the war broke out, and everything she knew changed in an instant.
"Honestly, I can't put into words how difficult it was. It was the uncertainty, not knowing what's next. It really hit me when I realised we can lose our house.
"I started crying and said to my mom, 'we're going to be refugees'."
"This is a different Sudan from the one I knew. It really is so heartbreaking."
The British Foreign Ministry has said more than 30 million people in Sudan are in desperate need, and 12 million women and girls are in danger of gender-based violence.
For Lena, it is hard to comprehend what is happening in her country:
"These are my people, the people of my country. For me, it was a privilege to be able to leave, but many people don’t have that privilege. It's just insane to see that the country has gone to the point the famine.
"People’s houses are being broken into. It's just so surreal to see, this is a different Sudan from the one I knew. It really is so heartbreaking."
Read more:
Where does the Sudan war stand after two years of devastation?
Nations call for immediate end to 'horrific' Sudan war
Decreased global funding complicating famine in Sudan, says WFP
