Sudan has rapidly transformed from a minor transit route into a major manufacturing center for the synthetic stimulant Captagon, with production scaling to industrial levels since civil war erupted in April 2023, according to a new report by the Sudan Transparency and Policy Tracker (STPT).
The STPT analysis, released this month, links the surge to the collapse of Syria’s state-backed drug networks in late 2024, which redirected narco-traffickers to Sudan’s fractured governance, porous borders and key Red Sea access points. Seizure records show explosive growth: authorities uncovered a facility churning out 7,200 pills per hour in June 2023, escalating to a massive laboratory near Khartoum’s oil refinery by February 2025 capable of 100,000 pills hourly — with raw materials for 700 million tablets.
The report frames narcotics as a core pillar of Sudan’s war economy, generating high-margin cash flows for armed groups. While evidence does not confirm direct oversight by Rapid Support Forces (RSF) leadership, drug operations have proliferated in RSF-held territories amid eroded judicial control.
In Darfur, cities like Nyala and Al-Daein have evolved into open markets for drugs and arms trading. Al Radom National Park — a UNESCO World Heritage Site now under RSF control in South Darfur — serves as the main cultivation zone for bango, a potent local cannabis variant, with production areas doubling through alliances between traffickers and militias since fighting began.
Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) also stand implicated, having integrated militias with established transnational crime ties, including the Awlad Gumri and Sudan Shield Forces (SSF). Brigadier General Bashir Abdalla Haimoor of the SSF reportedly earns the local moniker “King of Ice” for alleged crystal methamphetamine operations.
Beyond war funding, Captagon has permeated combat ranks on both sides, used by fighters to suppress hunger, heighten alertness and dull combat fears. The STPT warns this stimulant use likely fuels heightened battlefield brutality as Sudan’s conflict grinds into its third year.
Captagon is the brand name for fenethylline, a synthetic stimulant drug that was originally developed in the 1960s as a pharmaceutical treatment for ADHD, narcolepsy, and depression. It was banned in most countries by the 1980s due to its high potential for addiction. Today, it is an illegal, counterfeit substance that has become one of the most commonly abused drugs.
