Sudan’s fuel woes threaten El Gezira wheat harvest

Farmers of the El Gezira and El Managil Scheme south of Khartoum are complaining of a shortage of means to harvest a bumper crop. The Ministry of Energy said on Thursday that the fuel crisis will end soon.

Ahmed Abdelbagi, a member of the agricultural scheme, told Radio Dabanga from Wad Madani on Friday that the farmers in El Gezira have great difficulty to obtain petrol, diesel, and burlap sacks to complete the wheat harvest this winter season.

“Despite the large wheat production this season, estimated at 15 to 20 (100 kg) sacks per acre, the scarcity of fuel and burlap sacks forms a stumbling block for the farmers,” he explained.

He appealed to the Ministry of Agriculture to provide fuel “so that our yields can contribute to relieving the hardship of living experienced in the country”.

On Thursday, the Ministry of Energy announced the arrival of 40,000 tons of petrol and 38,000 tons of diesel by ship in Port Sudan.

The Ministry also reported that the Khartoum refinery is operating at maximum capacity again, producing 70 per cent of the petrol, 45 per cent of the diesel, and 65 per cent of the cooking gas needed in the country.

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