Sudan's Omdurman Food Prices Soar by 20-25% Amid North Darfur Crisis

• Food prices have surged by 20-25 per cent in Omdurman over the past month.
• Essential goods such as sugar, flour, and cooking oil are now selling at record-high prices.
• The El Malha Emergency Room has warned of a potential famine in North Darfur due to disrupted supply routes and shortages.
• Families are being forced to sell livestock at low prices just to buy food, exacerbating the crisis.

The region is on the brink of famine as the rainy season approaches.

The food crisis in North Darfur has reached alarming levels, with prices of essential goods skyrocketing across the region. In Omdurman, residents have reported a staggering increase of 20 to 25 per cent in food and consumer prices over the past month alone. The situation is further exacerbated by the economic fallout of Sudan's war, which has left households struggling to make ends meet. A resident of El Thawra neighbourhood in Omdurman shared that a kilogram of sugar now costs around SDG5,000, up from SDG4,500-4,800 last month. This trend is not limited to sugar; prices of other staples such as flour, cooking oil, and pasta have also risen significantly.

The El Malha Emergency Room in North Darfur has sounded the alarm on the devastating impact of disrupted supply routes and shortages of basic commodities. Raja Mohamed Abkar, a spokesperson for the emergency room, warned that the region is on the brink of famine as the rainy season approaches. The closure of the Ed Debba-Mellit road, which links El Malha to Ed Debba in Northern State and Mellit in North Darfur, has severely disrupted transportation and supply chains. As a result, markets in El Malha and surrounding villages are nearly empty of grain and other essentials. A bottle of corn now costs between SDG34,000 and SDG36,000, while a kilogram of sugar costs around SDG5,000 and a bottle of cooking oil around SDG10,000.

The humanitarian situation in North Darfur is dire, with families forced to sell livestock at low prices just to buy food. The El Malha Emergency Room has appealed to humanitarian organisations and donors to provide urgent assistance before the rainy season sets in. Heavy rains could further exacerbate the crisis by closing roads and making access even more difficult for aid workers. With vegetable supplies dwindling to limited quantities of oranges and lemons, each costing around SDG2,000, the situation is becoming increasingly dire. The El Malha Emergency Room has urged donors to provide food and other essential assistance to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe.

Lawyers advising clients on investments or business operations in North Darfur should be aware of the escalating food crisis and potential disruptions to supply chains, which may impact their clients' ability to access essential goods.

Source: Original reporting via Radio Dabanga