♦ Sudan: This week’s news in brief ♦

A compact digest of this week's most-read highlights, from the heart of Sudan. Subscribe to receive this digest weekly in your inbox.

Sudan govt, SPLN-N El Hilu sign Declaration of Principles in Juba

March 28 – 2021 JUBA The Sudanese government and Sudanese People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLN-N) signed a Declaration of Principles (DOP) in the South Sudan capital of Juba this morning.

The two parties agreed “to work together to achieve and consolidate the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of Sudan”.

They further agreed to “the establishment of a civil, democratic, federal state in Sudan, wherein, the freedom of religion, the freedom of belief and religious practices and worship shall be guaranteed to all Sudanese people by separating the identities of culture region, ethnicity, and religion from the State”.

The declaration stipulates that by the end of the transitional period, a single [apolitical] professional army must be formed. In the meantime, there will be a gradual integration and unification of forces, reflecting the Sudanese diversity.

‘Alarming’ COVID-19 surge among Sudan’s youth

March 30 – 2021 KHARTOUM The current surge in COVID-19 infections across Sudan is contributing to the spread of the virus and new, stricter measures are being mooted.

At a press conference in Khartoum yesterday, member of the Sovereignty Council and Chairman of the Committee for Health Emergencies, Siddig Tawir, described the COVID-19 situation in Sudan as “as alarming for everyone”. If the current trend continues, it will require “strict measures and closures”.

Tawir said that “there has been a significant number of deaths, and COVID-19 patients are filling-up available hospital beds”. He attributed the rise in the infection rate to a lax attitude to the second wave of the pandemic and “many people thinking that the pandemic is over”.

As reported by Radio Dabanga last week, disinfection and social distancing are now mandatory in Sudan’s state institutions, schools, public transport, and all gathering places subject to overcrowding, as well as in workplaces.

Pharmacists: ‘Catastrophic’ medicine situation in Sudan
March 29 – 2021 KHARTOUM The Professional Pharmacists Association of Sudan say that the meteoric rise in the price of essential medicines has created a ‘catastrophic’ situation where “some remedies now cost more than the minimum wage”.
 
Sudan’s Desert Hawks bound for Afcon in Cameroon
March 29 – 2021 KHARTOUM Sudan’s national football team, the Desert Hawks, have secured a place in the line-up for the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) for the first time in nine years, with a convincing 2-0 victory over South Africa's …
 
Sudan’s exchange rate: Report on how to sustain progress, pre-empt risks
March 27 – 2021 NEW YORK On February 21, Sudan’s civilian-led transitional government implemented a managed float of the Sudanese pound, aligning the official rate of exchange, previously at SDG55 to $1, with the parallel market’s rate of SDG375 to $1.
 
Rehabilitation for women affected by war in Sudan's Nuba Mountains
March 26 – 2021 DABANGA SUDAN In an interview with Radio Dabanga, Kuju Sheyn, representative of a network of civil society organisations active in areas controlled by the Sudanese People’s Liberation Movement-North of Abdelaziz El Hilu (SPLM-N El Hilu) …
 
Call for Sudan’s Public Order Law to be reinstated sparks public outcry
March 26 – 2021 KHARTOUM / OMDURMAN Yesterday, the Sudanese Interior Ministry distanced itself from remarks by the Director of Khartoum State Police, Lt Gen Eisa Ismail, calling for the Public Order Law to be reinstated “to combat crime”.
 
Additional funding for Sudan's Family Support Programme
March 25 – 2021 KHARTOUM The World Bank and the Sudanese government officially signed an agreement yesterday to confirm additional financial support of $420 million for the second phase of Sudan’s Samarat Family Support Programme.
 
Economist: ‘Sudanese Pound stable but real reform needed’
March 24 – 2021 KHARTOUM Foreign currency exchange rates for the Sudanese Pound (SDG) against major international currencies have remained relatively stable since the Khartoum government effectively floated the Pound and …
 
Darfur lawyers: ‘Police still view displaced as rebels’
March 24 – 2021 KALMA / KHARTOUM / ABU KARINKA / EL GENEINA The Darfur Bar Association (DBA) calls on the Sudanese government to urgently develop a plan to contain the situation in Kalma camp for the displaced near Nyala.