It was with great sorrow that I learned of the passing of Dr. Hayder Ibrahim Ali in Cairo on Friday, 25 September 2026. Although I knew that he had been seriously ill and I tried unsuccessfully to connect with him, the message from his son Mozafar nonetheless came as a shocking surprise. I had in-person meetings with Hayder on several occasions during which he impressed me as a very thoughtful, deferential, righteous man of high moral and intellectual integrity.
I first met Hayder in Cairo, where he founded in 1992 the Center for Sudanese Studies, which became the institution for promoting research, publication, and dialogue on Sudan for Sudanese scholars, intellectuals, and political leaders. My earliest recollection of the Center's activities was sharing a forum with the then former Prime Minister, Sadig Al-Mahdi, when I presented the theme of the national identity crisis, which I believe has been the core of the conflicts that have devastated the country since independence on January 1, 1956.
I believe that was the first time I told an anecdote about an element of Sudan's identity crisis, which I would often retell over the years. I was then a student of law at Khartoum University. I went to see Santino Deng, one of the three ministers in President Ibrahim Abboud's government. I found the Minister out of his office, which his office messenger tried to tell me in very broken English: "Minister no; Minister go." I responded to him in Arabic, which I spoke well, having attended secondary school in Northern Sudan. "Why don't you first try the language you know, and if you are not understood, then try other languages?" I said. He seemed stunned by my speaking Arabic. "I am so sorry. By God, I thought you were a South Sudanese." Language is a major factor that then divided Northerners and Southerners.
Apart from Hayder's own outstanding scholarly contributions to Sudanese studies in areas of critical concern to nation-building, for me personally, he played a pivotal role in making many of my over forty books accessible to Sudanese readers by translating and publishing them in Arabic. These books cover a wide range of subjects: among them history, politics, culture, biographies, and folklore. Over the years, I have been surprised and deeply moved by the awards I received from such unexpected sources as the Arab Historians and Sudanese writers, for which much of the credit goes to the accessibility of my books, which Hayder facilitated. To me, this demonstrated an element, albeit small, in Hayder's contribution to tearing down the cultural and intellectual wall that had separated North and South Sudan.
As I have often said, when Neil Armstrong landed on the Moon on 20 July 1969, the eyes of the world focused only on him. Those who had made that possible had their eyes glued to their computers as they followed the flight until the successful landing. Although they then exploded with celebratory sounds of joy, they remained unknown to the world. I am not comparing Hayder's accomplishment to landing on the moon, but his contribution to tearing down the walls of knowledge between the North and the South and bringing the nation together through his innumerable publications and circles of dialogue and exchange of views is a major feat known only to a relatively few people.
Over the years, I would encounter individuals from whom I would learn that they had translated my books into Arabic, which Hayder published through his Center. Recently, following my receiving the Integrity Award conferred by the Center for International Private Enterprise, I received a deeply moving message from Ms. Shaza Elmahdi, one of the organizers. What she said was a testimony to the impact of my books which Hayder helped make available to the Sudanese readers and their contribution to cross-cultural understanding among the Sudanese. Shaza wrote: "It meant so much to me personally to have you join us at the summit. Yesterday ended on a deeply emotional note. You hold a special place in the hearts of millions of Sudanese people, and I am one of them. We grew up learning from your books, and your words have shaped how so many of us understand our country, our identity, and ourselves. To write and leave such a lasting imprint on generations is, in itself, an extraordinary legacy." With such powerful words of praise, who needs a Nobel Prize? This also shows that writing a book is only a small step in the long journey of promoting the cause they are intended to serve.
Hayder's legacy is however more transcendent than the dissemination of books. Islam, following Christianity, now promises Eternal Life in Heaven for those who have led a virtuous life on earth. Indigenous Nilotic religions on the other hand stipulate a form of immortality on earth through the family the deceased leaves behind and in the memory of those he or she has touched in a profound, memorable way. On both counts, through his wife Hayat and their children, and of course the countless people in Sudan and globally whom he profoundly touched, Hayder is assured of both forms of immortality. May he rest in the Eternal Peace that was in desperately short supply on earth, and which he abundantly earned in Heaven. And may God Almighty console his family, friends, colleagues, and wide circle of associates for their grave worldly loss.
Dr. Francis Mading Deng - Woodstock, New York