SUDAN NEWS ALERT: AP - UN envoy: Sudan could face economic and security collapse

29/3/2022: AP - UN envoy: Sudan could face economic and security collapse, by Edith M. Lederer

 

AP report that the UN’s envoy to Sudan, Volker Perthes, warned that Sudan is heading for “an economic and security collapse” unless it addresses the political paralysis following the October 2021 military coup and moves toward resuming a civilian-led transition.

 

Perthes told the UN Security Council that the military’s “violent repression” of protests against the coup is continuing and the absence of a political agreement on returning to a transitional path has already led to a deteriorating economic, humanitarian and security situation in Sudan.

 

Perthes added that the UN, the African Union and the eight-nation east African regional group called the Intergovernmental Authority in Development (IGAD) agreed to join efforts to facilitate Sudanese-led political talks.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Radio Dabanga - Prices soar across Sudan as coronavirus measures bite

29/3/2020: Radio Dabanga - Prices soar across Sudan as coronavirus measures bite

 Radio Dabanga reports that commodity prices across Sudan are soaring as national coronavirus have imposed travel restrictions that negatively impact vulnerable populations.

 Transport fees have soared in Khartoum, Kordofan, Darfur and El-Gedaref, leading to limited supplies and raised the prices of food, fuel and consumer goods. Many who rely on day-to-day work are also unable to make incomes.

 According to El-Shafee Abdullah, a co-ordinator for an internally displaced persons’ camp in Darfur, the ending of UN World Food Programme (UNWFD) rations in displacement camps forced people to seek work. He called on the UNWFD, government and humanitarian aid organisations to help displaced persons.

 The government has called upon state governors to facilitate the movement of goods to ensure the smooth flow of commodities.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Radio Dabanga - Coronavirus: UN Humanitarian Coordinator calls for ceasefire across Sudan

29/3/2020: Radio Dabanga - Coronavirus: UN Humanitarian Coordinator calls for ceasefire across Sudan

 Radio Dabanga reports that UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, Gwi-Yeop Son, has called for a ceasefire across Sudan as part of a global fight against coronavirus pandemic.

 “Let’s not forget that in conflict-affected areas health services have been affected the worst. Therefore, it is crucial to create corridors for life-saving aid and open precious windows for diplomacy and ultimate peace,” Son added.

 The UN Humanitarian Coordination (OCHA) points out that the health system in Sudan has been affected by years of under-investment and economic crisis, with only one third of health facilities offering a complete basic package of care.

SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: Bloomberg - Africa Is Two to Three Weeks Away From Height of Virus Storm

29/3/2020: Bloomberg - Africa Is Two to Three Weeks Away From Height of Virus Storm, by Prinesha Naidoo

 Bloomberg reports that Africa is two to three weeks away from the worst of the coronavirus storm, and needs an emergency economic stimulus of $100 billion to bolster preventative measures and support its fragile healthcare systems, according to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).

 Almost half of the funds could come from waiving interest payments to multilateral institutions, giving countries the fiscal space needed to impose social-distancing measures, widen social safety nets and equip hospitals to treat the sick ahead of an expected surge in infections, UNECA Executive Secretary Vera Songwe said.

 Songwe added that a measure that may provide immediate relief is the creation of the special purpose vehicle requested by African finance ministers through which interest payments on sovereign bonds could be sequestered and provide all African countries.

 Songwe warned that the pandemic “would weigh on Africa’s health and education sectors for years to come.”