SUDAN NEWS ALERT: AP - Sudanese go hungry as prices spiral upward in wake of coup

5/4/2022: AP - Sudanese go hungry as prices spiral upward in wake of coup, by Samy Magdy

AP report on dramatic price increases for bread, fuel, electricity, medicine, health care and public transportation in Sudan, with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs saying over $1.9 billion is needed in 2022 to protect 14.3 million people in Sudan.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation said 5.6 million people are affected by agricultural dryness alongside the 9.8 million people who are food insecure due to the economic crisis, with violence in Darfur and Kordofan damaging farms and leaving many jobless.

Economic researcher Sabna Imam said Sudan was expecting $700 million in the 2022 budget in foreign loans and aid to ease the burden of austerity measures, including the currency flotation and slashing of subsidies for bread and fuel, but the military-led government increased taxes and other fees by 145%, which “adds to people’s sufferings” after the suspension of aid following the coup.