With tens of thousands killed, and millions displaced, the war in Sudan has been tearing through the country for 10+ months, leaving a devastating impact in addition to massive destruction of infrastructure, with millions left facing acute famine.
Ten months into the war, although the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has seized power in many parts of Sudan, it continues to commit all types of crimes in the areas under its control, failing to act as a de facto ruler who provides basic necessities of life and security while causing an ongoing humanitarian crisis and the suffering of millions.
For months, areas controlled by the RSF have suffered the effects of the state’s absence; for example, militia members seized and robbed residences and cars in Khartoum. Testimonies from displaced people in Khartoum revealed that the militia was aggressively bringing in their soldiers’ families to dwell in their evicted homes.
These violations also occurred in Wad Madani, Gezira state, a community that is considered an asylum for millions. The RSF also raided marketplaces and universities.
The looting included the Kenana sugar mill and agricultural initiatives, which were the principal sources of revenue for the area’s population. However, looting is becoming a way of life for the RSF members.
The finance ministry, which has not set a national budget for 2023 or 2024 and has skipped quarterly reporting, recently increased the exchange rate for imports and exports from 650 Sudanese pounds to 950. However, this is still much below the currency’s true value.
With most banks closed, the only currency rate that matters to the average Sudanese is on the black market, where the dollar currently costs roughly 1,200 Sudanese pounds. “It’s a sign of the destruction of the Sudanese economy,” al-Sadiq Jalal, former Sudanese Chamber of Commerce director, told AFP.
The World Bank in September said, “widespread destruction of Sudan’s economic foundations has set the country’s development back by several decades”.
The International Monetary Fund has predicted that even after the fighting ends, “years of reconstruction” await the northeast African country.
The military’s overthrow of Bashir in 2019 following widespread protests resulted in a fragile transition to civilian governance, supported by signs of economic regeneration and international acceptance.
Burhan and Daglo’s coup in 2021, before they turned on each other, triggered a new economic disaster when the World Bank and the United States suspended essential foreign aid.
The war has internally displaced more than six million of Sudan’s 48 million people, and more than half of the population requires humanitarian assistance to live, according to the United Nations.
Thousands of people have been killed, including 10,000 to 15,000 in a single city in western Darfur, according to UN officials.
ALBAWABA/Al-Yurae
