Sudan’s Higher Economic Committee, chaired by Prime Minister Kamil Idris, approved an aggressive package of emergency measures on Thursday. This decision aims to stabilize the Sudanese pound, which has witnessed a catastrophic freefall since the outbreak of conflict in April 2023. The scale of the economic crisis is underscored by the pound’s dramatic devaluation; before the war, the currency traded at approximately 600 pounds per dollar, but it has since cratered to a record low of 3,665 pounds per dollar on the parallel market.
This economic collapse has been fueled by a “perfect storm” of failing stabilizers, including a near-total halt in industrial and agricultural production and a widening trade gap. According to 2025 data, the nation faces a massive trade deficit of $3.86 billion, with imports reaching $6.49 billion against a meager $2.64 billion in exports. Furthermore, a critical shortage of foreign exchange reserves has left the Central Bank struggling to intervene effectively in the volatile market.
Undersecretary of the Ministry of Culture, Information, and Tourism, Graham Abdel Qadir, confirmed that the recovery roadmap focuses on structural discipline and revenue maximization. Key pillars of the plan include strict regulations on the import of luxury goods to preserve remaining foreign currency and new policies to incentivize Sudanese expatriates to transfer funds through official banking channels rather than the black market. To enhance transparency and combat corruption, the committee mandated that all foreign trade procedures be processed through the digital “Baladna” platform.
The government also issued a mandate to rationalize state spending and eliminate illegal levies that hinder internal trade. These measures are being implemented against a backdrop of a deepening humanitarian crisis, including a surge in Dengue Fever across seven states and a recent drone strike on Al-Jabalain hospital that claimed 12 lives.
The committee emphasized that stabilizing the exchange rate is not merely a financial goal but a necessity for the survival of the state, asserting that re-establishing economic balance is the only way to contain the continuous decline of the local currency.
