On a road surrounded by yellow sand from all sides, a gas station in the heart of the Nile River State desert breaks the silence with the sounds of hundreds of cars lined up in front of it to refuel amid an economic crisis that grips the areas under the control of the Sudanese army and its allies from the Muslim Brotherhood group and armed movements.
The scene of long queues in the city of Abu Hamad in Nile River State, which was documented by the "Sudan Ultra" platform with a video clip published on its X platform account, has become recurrent in different areas under army management, casting its shadow on the prices of basic goods and services that are not available in the first place, thus millions of families suffer in a war-torn country since April 2023.
Idle factories
Regarding the tragic reality experienced by Sudanese in areas under military control, a report by the local newspaper Al-Rakoba says, "Sudanese are now trapped between a never-ending war and increasingly fierce inflation, as traders close their stores, and others have left the markets, with continued deterioration of purchasing power and rising prices and the loss of many basic goods from the markets following a decision to ban the import of some goods into Sudan".
The newspaper points out that these conditions coincide with "the grinding halt of factory wheels due to the lack of basic services such as electricity and water, in addition to the tightening practiced by the government through high fees and taxes, which has led to almost complete paralysis in the markets with daily price increases".
The report confirms that "the recent and continuing wave of inflation reveals a living reality that is becoming harsher day by day, reflecting a scene, which is repeated in both cities and villages alike, the extent of erosion that has affected the economic and social structure in Sudan, where the ability to provide basic needs has become a luxury that many cannot afford".
Al-Rakoba references a recent report by the Joint Market Monitoring Initiative, which showed "a 2% increase in the cost of the minimum expenditure in Sudan during the past May, amid continuing inflationary pressures faced by Sudanese across the states, as the value of the basket of minimum expenditure increased on the national level, reflecting an upward trend in the prices of basic commodities over the past months".
Moreover, figures from the same initiative report reveal how local areas under army control are affected by price madness, with "the highest costs of the minimum expenditure basket in areas of Kassala State, followed by Khartoum State, then South Kordofan State.
Disclaimer of responsibility
Nevertheless, this situation reflects, on the other hand, the failure of the Sudanese army under Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his government in managing the state and its economy, as a report by "Sudan Times" states, "Sudan has become today stuck between daily choking suffering and a warring economy dominated by armed interests. While Burhan continues to blame others and avoid accountability, civilians are the ones paying the price for a conflict driven by considerations of power, profit, and political survival".
The report noted that "Burhan acknowledged the magnitude of the exacerbating crises that Sudan is living, but critics say that his recent statements once again avoided taking responsibility for the collapse unfolding under the authority of Port Sudan... In a talk days ago amid escalating shortages of goods, power outages, and economic turmoil, the army commander admitted that Sudanese citizens are facing disasters that have affected almost every aspect of daily life since the outbreak of the war".
But instead of providing a clear path to ending the war or acknowledging responsibility for the state's failures, Burhan accused unnamed parties of causing the corruption and deepening the crisis, considering these statements an attempt to shift the blame toward figures within the administration of his Prime Minister Kamil Idris, presenting himself as an observer of events rather than a central authority behind the Sudanese government led by the military.
Here, "Sudan Times" alerts to "Burhan's comments that follow a familiar pattern of acknowledging suffering and blaming others while avoiding the political steps needed to stop the war. Behind the political rhetoric, Sudan's war economy is increasingly dominated by networks linked to Islamic factions from the former regime and armed movement leaders allied with the Sudanese Armed Forces. These groups have expanded their influence through strategic supply lines, obtaining profitable privileges in areas of fuel, import, and basic goods".
The report confirms that "the crises of goods shortages that destroy the lives of ordinary Sudanese have become a source of profit for middlemen linked to the war. As fuel scarcity, rising prices, and worsening humanitarian conditions create opportunities for those controlling access to goods, transportation routes, and state-linked contracts".
Observers of the situation in Sudan highlight that the living conditions of Sudanese "explain why many groups surrounding the Sudanese army have no real interest in ending the conflict. Peace would threaten the political and economic privileges acquired by these groups under war conditions, but at the same time, the burden continues to fall on civilians. Families struggle in the face of sharp price increases, fuel shortages, frequent power outages, and displacement costs, while centers of armed and ideological power compete for gains in an economy that is gradually collapsing".
Lastly, "Sudan Times" outlines the current phase "Burhan's expressions sharply contradict his sympathy with the Sudanese people, while his behavior at the negotiation table. While a large part of public opinion demands an immediate end to the war, the army leadership continues to set conditions, delay peace efforts, and maintain its alliances with Islamic factions and armed groups that benefit from prolonging the conflict".
