The Impact of Economic Sanctions on Health in Africa: A Literature Review, 2010–2024

Anecdotal evidence suggests that health and well-being are often threatened in nations subjected to sanctions; however, the causal link remains complex and indirect. This paper examines the impacts of economic sanctions on the overall health and well-being of African countries, specifically Sudan and Libya. Using a literature review design, the study draws from peer-reviewed publications, grey literature, and institutional reports to assess how sanctions interact with pre-existing structural and political challenges. The analysis reveals that while sanctions have contributed to worsening humanitarian conditions, their effects are largely exacerbating rather than causal. In both Sudan and Libya, decades of conflict, governance fragility, and underinvestment in health infrastructure remain the principal determinants of deteriorating health outcomes. Sanctions amplify these pre-existing challenges by impeding trade, restricting financial transactions, and complicating access to essential medicines and medical equipment. Consequently, it becomes difficult to attribute the decline in health systems solely to sanctions. The study concludes by underscoring the need to review sanction regimes to ensure that humanitarian exemptions and international collaboration mechanisms are effectively implemented to protect civilian health and uphold human rights in sanctioned states.