Sudan, the grip of hunger hangs over millions of people due to a conflict that does not subside: the planting season is now seriously compromised

ROME – While the conflict in Sudan has been going on for two months now, many farmers, with the onset of the rainy season, which is the main period for planting in the country, have not been able to cultivate. The consequences of not sowing could have a devastating impact and lead millions of people, already economically weakened by these days of war, into the grip of hunger and destitution.

READ THE REASONS FOR THIS WAR

The current situation. The organization Islamic Relief reports that many farmers in Sudan, to cope with the current difficulties, are using up stocks of sorghum and millet seeds, which are the main source of nutrition for families, and therefore will not have others to plant in the future. The situation is particularly complicated in the Darfur, Kordofan, White Nile and Sennar regions. The conflict has forced many small farmers off their lands and destroyed entire stocks of fertilizers. The increase in the price of fertilizers, the continued disruption of banking services and the resulting lack of access to money mean that many farmers cannot afford to buy the necessary planting material this year.

Agriculture in Sudan. It accounts for 40 percent of the country’s GDP and employs 80 percent of the workforce, so any collapse of the agricultural sector would be devastating to the local economy. Non-governmental organizations working in the area are trying to buffer emergencies by bringing aid to those who need it most. Islamic Relief it has delivered food to more than 40,000 people in central Darfur and in Gezira, in the central-eastern part of the country. Also in Darfur, the organization is managing a series of centers specializing in the care of pregnant women and malnourished children. The next step will be to deliver the fertilizers to farmers in the Gedaref region and South Kordofan.

The security problem. Problems with security, bureaucracy and logistics in aid delivery across Sudan persist. The international donor conference this week pledged $1.5 billion in humanitarian response to the country’s crisis, but the impact will depend on how quickly the pledged funds reach people on the ground.

The balance sheet of the conflict. After two months of heavy fighting more than 2.2 million people have fled their homes and over two thousand have been killed. For many of the displaced families, food is their most urgent need. More than 17 million people across Sudan are suffering from hunger and, as always, children are particularly at risk: three million are already suffering from malnutrition. “Governments and international donors must do everything possible to save the planting season and help farmers in the country now. A missed growing season and a poor harvest are a catastrophe not only for Sudan but for this entire portion of Africa. If people cannot eat, they will flee to wherever they can find food, adding to the 2.2 million humans already uprooted by this conflict,” said Yusuf Roble, Islamic Relief’s East Africa director. A failed harvest in Sudan would in fact have a significant impact in neighboring countries, South Sudan for example, which imports wheat from Khartoum. The effects would therefore be wide-ranging, with Sudan and neighboring countries at risk of further destabilisation.