Sudan Situation Report, 21 Nov 2019 [EN/AR]

Highlights

• A total 319 suspected Rift Valley Fever cases have been reported in Sudan, with the most affected age group between 15 to 45 years, 83 per cent of the total suspected cases.

• Prices of cereals are still at record or near record levels despite the above-average 2018 harvest and overall favourable prospects for the current 2019-2020 crop harvest.

• So far in 2019, OCHA Sudan distributed US$101.5 million through the CERF and the SHF, assisting about 8.5 million people across the country.

• Cholera (337 cases), dengue (2,569 cases), rift valley fever (319 cases), and chikungunya (128 cases) reported across the country as of 19 November 2019

Rift Valley Fever outbreak in Sudan

The Sudanese Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) has announced an outbreak of Rift Valley Fever (RVF) in the country, with a total of 308 suspected RVF cases—including 11 related deaths—reported in Red Sea (126), River Nile (177), Khartoum (1), White Nile (1), Kassala (2), and Gedaref (1) states. The most affected age group is 15 to 45 years, which accounts for 83 per cent of the total suspected cases. The male to female ratio is 2.6, with a high proportion of the cases being farmers (37.5 per cent).

• World Health Organization (WHO) website
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website
• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) website

Prices of staple foods decline, but still at record or near record highs

Prices of locally grown sorghum and millet in Sudan began to decline seasonally in October with the start of the 2019 harvest, while prices of imported wheat increased, according to FAO’s latest Food Price Monitoring and Analysis (FPMA) Bulletin. However, prices of cereals are still at record or near record levels despite the above-average 2018 harvest and overall favourable prospects for the current 2019-2020 crop harvest. For instance, the October 2019 prices of sorghum (feterita) in Gedaref and Khartoum were about five times (increase of 385% and 414% respectively) of the October 2017 prices. The prices of millet in Khartoum and Nyala in October 2019 were five and three times of the October 2017 prices respectively (an increase of 417% and 200%), according to the FPMA Bulletin.

The June-September rainy season was characterized by above-average rainfall, which benefitted vegetation conditions and boosted yields, although they also triggered floods that resulted in localized losses of standing crops. The exceptionally high level of food prices is the result of the significant depreciation of the country’s currency, coupled with fuel shortages and soaring prices of agricultural inputs, which inflated production and transportation costs. The weak currency, coupled with shortages of hard currency, restrained the country’s ability to import food and non-food items, including wheat flour and fuel, thus causing shortages and higher prices, according to the FPMA Bulletin.

On 7 November, the state news agency SUNA reported that Sudan’s annual inflation in October was recorded at 57.7%. The inflation rate in September was 53.5%, according to an update from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Inflation rate increased due to the rising prices of food and beverages, SUNA reported.

In its latest Sudan Food Security Outlook for October 2019 – May 2020, FEWS NET reports that high staple food prices resulting from significant macroeconomic difficulties, combined with persistent insecurity in conflict-affected areas and flooding late in the rainy season, are contributing to higher than normal emergency food assistance needs in Sudan in late 2019. These needs are expected to persist into at least May 2020, particularly as the lean season approaches in agricultural and agropastoral areas, FEWS NET estimates.).