FACTBOX-Sudan's worsening humanitarian situation

An economic crisis that showed signs of abating before the coup now poses a humanitarian risk in a country rocked by political deadlock, increased violence and rising levels of hunger. They are located in camps in Eastern Sudan, a region which has also seen increased political tensions and threats of violence in the last two years.

Sudan's economy is once again hurtling towards collapse as exports plummet and the currency begins slipping on the black market following a military coup last year. An economic crisis that showed signs of abating before the coup now poses a humanitarian risk in a country rocked by political deadlock, increased violence and rising levels of hunger. Here's a look at the risks:

POVERTY AND HUNGER Under former President Omar al-Bashir, a brief period of growth was halted with the secession of oil-rich South Sudan in 2011. The country began running a large trade deficit, its currency plummeted, and prices of basic goods began rising. A sharp price increase for subsidised bread was a trigger for protests that eventually brought Bashir down.

The transitional government that replaced him instituted rapid IMF-monitored reforms. It devalued the currency, lowered subsidies on bread and electricity and removed subsidies altogether on petrol and diesel. International lenders and Western states offered assistance and debt relief, but froze it after the Oct. 25, 2021 coup. Inflation, lower in recent months, is still one of the highest in the world at 260%. Aid groups estimate that 14.3 million, or 30% of the population, will need humanitarian aid this year, the highest level in the past decade, and an increase of more than 50% in two years.

Due to high prices, many citizens report reducing their food purchases, skipping meals or cutting out meat and dairy products. The United Nations says up to 9.8 million could face acute levels of food insecurity in 2022, up by about a third from a year ago, due to high prices as well as a problematic harvest and conflict in some regions. VIOLENCE AND DISPLACEMENT

Sudan has seen conflict in its Western and Southern regions for years, in particular in the Darfur region that in the mid-2000s saw a conflict between rebel groups and government and militia forces that killed some 300,000. More than 3 million people are displaced across the country currently, according to UN estimates, about 2.5 million of them in Darfur.

Aid groups have warned that violent incidents, usually in the form of militia attacks or tribal clashes, increased in Darfur to levels not seen in years. That violence has triggered more than 400,000 people, some of them already in displacement camps, to flee their homes last year. Sudan is home to 1.1 million refugees, including many from South Sudan and Eritrea, as well as more than 50,000 from the conflict in Ethiopia's Tigray region that broke out in 2020. They are located in camps in Eastern Sudan, a region which has also seen increased political tensions and threats of violence in the last two years. (Writing by Nafisa Eltahir; Editing by Aidan Lewis and Alex Richardson)

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