Transportation tariffs soar in Sudan

People all over Sudan have expressed their resentment about the skyrocketing transport prices after the government liberalised the fuel market on Thursday. Security forces are stationed near petrol stations to disperse expected protests.

The price of a bus ride from El Haj Yousef district in Khartoum North to central Khartoum rose from SDG2 ($0.30) to SDG3 ($0.50) and from SDG2.5 ($0.40) to SDG4.50 ($0.70) on Friday, a listener reported to Radio Dabanga.

In Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan, the price of a gallon of petrol rose from SDG25 ($4) to SDG35 ($5.50). The price of a gallon of diesel increased from SDG18 ($2.80) to SDG25. The costs of a bus ride within the city rose from SDG3 to SDG5 ($0.80).

Eastern Sudanese now pay SDG31 ($4.90) instead of SDG23 ($3.60) for a gallon of petrol, and SDG20 ($3.15) instead of SDG15 ($2.35) for a gallon of diesel, a resident of Kassala town told this station. The ticket for a bus trip from Kassala to New Halfa went up from SDG20 to SDG25.

He added that the price of a cylinder of cooking gas rose from SDG100 ($16) to SDG130 ($20).

Fuel prices are also soaring in western Sudan. The price of a gallon of petrol rose in Nyala, capital of South Darfur, to SDG39 ($6). A gallon of diesel now costs SDG30, and a cylinder of cooking gas SDG130.

Those who want to travel from Nyala to Khartoum, now pay SDG1,450 ($227) for a one-way airline ticket and SDG500 ($78) for a bus ticket, a South Darfur activist reported.

Multiple sources reported from various towns in the country that security forces are guarding roads and petrol stations in anticipation of popular protests.