Food prices spike as fighting burgeons in Sudan

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: The Guardian
29 Apr 2023 23:09
1 Shares

Very few people venture to go out. In addition the large-scale armed conflict, armed robberies have become increasingly more common. Money is tight among the local Sudanese as the economic cycle stifles.

People walk past shuttered shops in Khartoum, Sudan, Tuesday, April 18, 2023 (AP)

The unstable security situation in Sudan is slowly taking its toll on the economy: especially in regard to food products, according to a report by The Guardian.

Locals have forsaken their day-to-day jobs out of fear of getting caught in the cross-fire. The Guardian correspondent reports that Omdurman's open-air market, which used to be an economic hub for the exchange of goods, has had half of its stalls closed.

Ever since the violence broke out, causing fuel stations to close down, fuel prices have spiked impacting by extension the prices of all other commodities.

In interviews conducted with locals, the correspondent reported that transportation expenses have increased by 6 fold, beef has increased by 3 folds, vegetable prices have roughly doubled, and sugar which is a vital commodity in Sudan went up from 6,000 Sudanese pounds to 10kg to 10,000 Sudanese pounds.

Very few people venture to go out. In addition to the large-scale armed conflict, armed robberies have become increasingly more common. Money is tight among the local Sudanese as the economic cycle stifles.

The sharp spike in expenses has become a more pressing matter to locals than the burgeoning conflict.

Yesterday, Sudan's Minister of Energy and Petroleum Mohamed Abdallah Mahmud relayed to Sputnik on Friday that the current situation will "inevitably" impact the energy sector.

"It will inevitably have consequences, but we hope and look forward to the end of these events ... Sudan has a huge potential, and I think that if there are factors of stability, Sudan will be ready for investment," Mahmud said, adding that all foreign workers employed at energy facilities have been evacuated from the conflict zones.

However, the evacuation did not impact the energy sector's operations since Sudanese specialists are fulfilling the tasks required.

Despite the ongoing clashes, the Sudanese army said that the coming days will witness a major breakthrough in the country, adding that the military situation inside and outside Khartoum is very stable, with the exception of West Darfur. The army statement stated that the RSF continues to randomly shell areas in central Khartoum.

South Sudan's Acting Foreign Minister, Deng Dau Malek, confirmed on Wednesday that Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has agreed to speak with the RSF General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo or Hemedti, but no location has been specified.