Red Sea State MP warns of famine in eastern Sudan

A member of the Red Sea State parliament has warned for a famine in the state. Speaking to Radio Dabanga from Port Sudan on Friday, Hamed Idris, MP for Agig constituency, said that the food situation in eastern Sudan is “alarmingly bad”. “The rains and floods have increased the size of the disaster, especially in Toker delta. People are malnourished, and tuberculosis is spreading fast. Above this, the unemployment rates, in particular among graduates is huge.” Idris holds the Red Sea State government responsible for the deterioration of the situation, as “it is not taking any measures to contain the situation”. “The state’s government is in fact absent in all eight localities.” He noted that food prices have risen by 100 percent in the entire state. “People pay now SDG 5 ($0.87) for a pound of sugar, and SDG 30 ($5.25) for half a litre of cooking oil. The price of a 100kg sack of sorghum has risen to SDG 400 ($70).” The MP appealed to “all international and national organisations to prevent the eastern Sudanese from dying of famine and diseases”. File photo Related: ‘Humanitarian disaster in Red Sea State’: eastern Sudan MP (3 September 2014)