Sudan's food crisis deepens as conflict drags on: WFP report

Sudan is battling a food security crisis amid a deadly armed conflict, which has contributed to significant increases in the prices of essential commodities, said a report released Sunday by the U.N. World Food Program (WFP).

According to the agency's Sudan Market Monitor report, the cost of the WFP Local Food Basket rose to 2,231 Sudanese pounds in September, which represented a 16-percent increase from August and a 237-percent surge year on year.

Last month, the price of sorghum surged to 2,021 Sudanese pounds per kilogram, reflecting a sharp 25-percent jump from August and a shocking 371-percent rise compared with September 2023, said the report.

Wheat flour also saw a notable rise, with prices reaching 3,540 Sudanese pounds per kilogram, up 25 percent from the previous month and 194 percent from the same period last year, it said.

Additionally, the Sudanese pound depreciated slightly in the parallel market, falling by 2 percent to approximately 2,600 Sudanese pounds per U.S. dollar, marking a 225-percent decline in value since September 2023. This situation underscores the ongoing inflation and currency challenges that are making it increasingly difficult for households to afford basic necessities.

Sudan has been ravaged by a deadly conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces since mid-April 2023. The conflict has resulted in approximately 20,000 deaths, thousands of injuries, and the displacement of millions, according to recent estimates by the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

One and a half years of violence in Sudan has also created what the WFP warned this March the "world's largest hunger crisis", with nearly 25.6 million people, or over half of the Sudanese population, facing food insecurity, according to U.N. estimates.

Sudan's food crisis deepens as conflict drags on: WFP report

Sudan's food crisis deepens as conflict drags on: WFP report

Sudan's food crisis deepens as conflict drags on: WFP report

Sudan's food crisis deepens as conflict drags on: WFP report

It is hoped that the Kansai business community of Japan will continue to seize China's development opportunities for mutual benefit and win-win results, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said on Wednesday.

He, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks in a meeting in Beijing with a delegation from Japan's Kansai business community.

Noting China and Japan's deep integration in terms of industrial and supply chains and their broad common interests and cooperation space, He encouraged Japan's Kansai business community to continue to grasp China's development opportunities, and deepen practical cooperation for mutual success and win-win outcomes.

Leaders of the delegation expressed their appreciation for China's achievements in economic and social development -- and their willingness to contribute more to achieving mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries.

Chinese vice premier encourages Japanese enterprises to deepen practical cooperation with China