Usually, Youssef and the rest of the farmers, especially those who work in the rainfed sector, begin in the current May the land preparation operations and the supply of seeds and improved seeds after obtaining the necessary financing from the Government Agricultural Bank, but it has not been possible to take these measures so far, which will lead it to exit the most important agricultural season entirely or to a significant reduction in cultivated areas, according to the site “Sky News Arabia”.
Youssef embodies the reality of millions of Sudanese who depend on agriculture for their livelihood during two agricultural seasons a year, summer and winter.
The summer season is the most important of all in terms of cultivated area and productivity as it includes the rainfed and irrigated sectors, while the winter season is limited to the irrigated areas on the banks of the Nile.
threatened to fail
Agricultural expert, Engineer Ayman Dafa Allah says in an interview with “Sky News Arabia Economy” that all available data confirms that the agricultural season in Sudan is in the wind and is threatened with failure, which will lead to a high food deficit which will aggravate the deterioration of the living conditions already existing in the country. He sees this as a glimmer of hope to salvage the situation in light of the continuing war.
The Sudanese economy is originally a traditional economy based on agriculture, which contributes 48% of the gross domestic product and absorbs 61% of the country’s workforce. This country has 170 million acres of arable land, or 40% of the agricultural land of the Arab countries combined, which has earned it the title of “world food basket”.
However, the warfires that have raged since mid-April between the army and the Rapid Support Forces have quickly devoured the global food basket, leaving a large hole that has feared at least 60% of Sudanese who depend on agriculture and animal husbandry. , to be exposed to the specter of famine in the absence of all the logistical aids that allow them to engage in the summer agricultural season.
“We have not received anything for the needs of the agricultural season, which is about to enter. We will not be able to cultivate a single acre without obtaining funding, the fate of which we do not yet know, because the government agricultural bank , the entrepreneur, closes Financing farmers with cash, seeds, fertilizers and pesticides, its doors have been closed due to the armed conflict.
And Bishara adds to the Sky News Arabia Economy site: “I am not at all optimistic that there will be a summer agricultural season this year due to the continuation of the war. The production is high, because the harvest produced covers hardly the agricultural bank loan amounts.
5 projects
Sudan has about 5 major irrigated agriculture projects on which it relies to build up a strategic stock of food grains such as maize and sesame and to meet part of the country’s wheat needs, which are the island in the center. Sudan, Suki, Wadi Halfa, Al-Rahad, and the Tokar Delta in the east of the country, and farmers rely on these projects Bank financing from the Government Agricultural Bank at all stages of the agricultural process, from seeds , pesticides, fertilizers and agricultural machinery to the packaging bags of crop products.
The situation of farmers in the rainfed sector in the Kordofan and Darfur regions of western Sudan seems to be better than the reality in the irrigated sector, as most of them depend on their own money in agricultural operations, which are conducted in a traditional manual manner subjective needs.
Mahjoub Al-Taher, a farmer from Sudan’s West Kordofan state, told the Economy of Sky News Arabia website: “The war has caused a significant drop in the prices of agricultural crops, especially groundnuts. The price of the quintal decreased by about (41) kilograms, from 15,000 pounds to 8,000 Sudanese pounds, which will expose farmers who are still preserving their crops to heavy losses that will affect them in the next agricultural season.
And he goes on to say, “I don’t think the ongoing conflict is preventing us from engaging in the summer agricultural season. We depend on local seeds and don’t care about pesticides and fertilizers. We didn’t use much fuel either. agricultural steps are done manually and with the help or use of animals to plow and prepare the land, but the deterioration of security remains. “The spread of looting and robbery gangs is a real threat to us.”
imp palm
Agricultural expert, Engineer Ayman Dafa Allah says: “The agricultural season is in the wind and the wind has stopped because of the war, which was preceded by the disappointment of the farmers following the season. previous one, which experienced a drop in production. , the fall in prices and the ensuing recession”, pointing out that the season is fast approaching and that strategic stocks of agricultural inputs are at zero.
Dafa Allah, who spoke on the “Sky News Arabia Economy” website, expected the reluctance of large farmers in the rainy sector and the reduction of the cultivated area, in order to reduce the expenditure of billions on inputs by production and orientation of traditional cultivation in limited areas that only meet the needs of the farmer and his livestock, due to the security threat weighing on immovable and movable property.
output of small farmers
He added, “The small farmer segment, which accounts for more than 70%, will fall out of the production cycle due to lack of finance. Agricultural input supply chains will also be affected as most of the big companies’ warehouses are in Khartoum, which is experiencing armed conflict, in addition to halting import operations via shipping lines, and seeds are Improved seeds are not available and do not cover the deficit, which is present in Port Sudan, according to the Agricultural Quarantine and the Department of Seeds and Biosecurity, all of which are central departments in the capital.
According to economic analyst Ahmed Khalil, the failure of a single agricultural season is enough to cause a complete economic collapse in the country, since agriculture represents the backbone of the Sudanese economy. .
Khalil tells Sky News Arabia Economy website, “Both sides in the war must allow agricultural inputs and fuel to reach the farmers as soon as possible and resume the work of the Agricultural Bank, even at its branch level. in areas outside the capital, Khartoum, which are experiencing relative calm in security conditions, to save what can be saved as the failure of the agricultural season will be a knockout blow for the Sudanese economy .
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