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Sudan Farmers Face Rising Costs From Middle East Conflict
Sudanese farmers already displaced by three years of domestic war are now confronting higher fuel and fertilizer prices triggered by disruptions in the Middle East. The increases have led some to cut planted areas in half or skip planting entirely as the country faces acute hunger affecting 19 million people.
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Sudanese farmers already struggling after three years of domestic conflict are confronting higher costs for fuel and fertilizer following disruptions from the conflict in the Middle East. Omer al-Hassan returned to his land two years after being forced off by the war in Sudan.
He and other farmers told The Associated Press they are now bracing for an expensive planting season, with some reducing production or not planting at all. The conflict has affected supply chains for imports coming through the Gulf region, which supplies more than half of Sudan's sea-imported fertilizer.
Fuel prices have risen around 30 percent, pushing up food prices across the country. " He and 10 other farmers working his land, which also grows potatoes and tomatoes, reported spending two months clearing weed-choked fields before planting onions.
They stated they cannot cover agricultural costs without government support. This has forced cuts in production and rationing of fertilizer. Another farmer, Mohammed al-Badri, said he could afford to plant only half his farm. "The rest of it is nothing," he said.
A 50-kilogram bag of urea fertilizer now costs about $50, up from $11 during the same period last year, according to Abdoun Berqawi, a farmer in Gezira, one of the country's main food-producing regions. Fuel for tractors has increased from $2.50 to $8 per gallon.
Sorghum, millet and sesame, key staple crops in Sudan, are now at risk. Farmers already affected by fighting between the Sudanese military and the Rapid Support Forces face higher expenses for fertilizer, gasoline for equipment and diesel for irrigation pumps.
