♦ Sudan: This week’s news in brief ♦
A compact weekly digest of Dabanga Sudan’s news highlights from Darfur and Sudan
Sovereign Council Chairman El Burhan visits proposed quarantine centres for (suspected) corona patients north of Khartoum (SUNA)
A compact weekly digest of Dabanga Sudan's news highlights from Darfur and Sudan
♦ Corona pandemic: Face mask and fruit prices soar in Sudan
A dozen of guavas or oranges were sold for SDG 130-140 instead of SDG 100 00 ($1.8). The price of face masks jumped from SDG 3 to SDG 50.
On Saturday, the Sudanese government announced the closure of universities, schools, and kindergartens for one month. Sovereign Council chairman Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan visited proposed quarantine centres in River Nile state.
The main streets, bus stations, and markets of Khartoum remained quite empty on Sunday.
A pharmacist told Radio Dabanga from Sudan's capital that medical disinfectants and sterilisation materials are insufficiently available in the pharmacies. Some pharmacists provide locally made sanitisers. They also dispense free face masks.
As reported by Radio Dabanga on Friday, Sudan has suspended flights to countries marked as major Covid-19 hotspots by the World Health Organization (WHO). The four crossing points between Sudan and Egypt have been closed ‘until further notice’.
On Tuesday, the Ministry of Health confirmed the first case of corona after a man in his 50s died in Khartoum.
“Opinions about the lifting of subsidies differ, but before taking any decision, it is necessary to know the actual amount of the subsidies, banker Abdelkarim Abdelfattah said in an interview with Radio Dabanga on Thursday.
“This amount should be compared with the size of the National Product, with the total government spending on sectors such as defence and security, and the expenditure of the Sovereign Council and the Council of Ministers.”
“The International Monetary Fund and other financial institutions put the lifting of subsidies as a prerequisite for obtaining financial support,” he explained. “That is why the government focuses on this particular solution.”
A solution proposed by many to replace the money still in the hands of the former regime's affiliates, is the changing of Sudan’s currency.
According to Abdelfattah, currency change as a means to restore a healthy banking system is possible, but must be accompanied by a set of arrangements, such as a stop on all purchases and sales, and a sufficient transfer of the ownership of real estate and movables before the date fixed for the change of the currency.
More news from Radio Dabanga:
Juba peace talks: Agreement on power sharing in Darfur
March 17 – 2020 JUBA The Sudanese government delegation and the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) alliance of armed movements have agreed in negotiations on the Darfur track on all power-sharing issues except …
Protest against North Darfur Urban Planning Minister’s support for ‘new settlers’
March 16 – 2020 KUTUM The Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC), the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA), and resistance committees in Kutum carried out a vigil in front of the Kutum locality offices on Sunday. …
Sudan’s fuel woes threaten El Gezira wheat harvest
March 15 – 2020 WAD MADANI 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 …
Sudan govt, SPLM-N initial Political Document on Two Areas
March 15 – 2020 JUBA The delegations of the Sudanese Government and the Malik Agar faction of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N Agar) initialled a Political Document at the Sudanese peace talks …
Sudan govt, rebel groups fail to reach peace accord on Darfur
March 14 – 2020 JUBA On Friday, the Sudanese government and the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) rebel alliance failed to reach a final peace agreement on the Darfur track. The South Sudanese mediation team in Juba …
Sudan: ‘Lack of control leads to loss of fuel, flour’
March 13 – 2020 PORT SUDAN / KHARTOUM / EL OBEID The fuel shortages in the capital of Red Sea state have led to an increase in bus prices. The governor of Khartoum proposed a mechanism to combat embezzlement …
More suspects held for Sudan PM attack – US experts to assist investigation
March 12 – 2020 KHARTOUM Several more suspects, including foreigners, have reportedly been arrested in Sudan in connection to the failed assassination attempt on Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok in Khartoum Bahri …
Young Darfur woman gang-raped and shot
March 11 – 2020 TURR / NYALA A group of gunmen gang-raped and shot a 17-year-old displaced woman in Central Darfur on Monday. In the capital of South Darfur, a policeman was killed by gunmen. Speaking to Radio Dabanga, …
Hamdok to chair Sudan's new Economic Crisis Management Mechanism
March 11 – 2020 KHARTOUM Yesterday, the Sovereign Council, the Council of Ministers, and the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) agreed in a trilateral meeting to assign Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok as the head of the …
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