Rapid Assessment of Food and Payment Systems in Sudan for a Coordinated Food Security Emergency Response

A rapid assessment by FSD Africa and FCDO Sudan analyzing the collapse of agri-food and payment systems in Sudan due to ongoing conflict, proposing targeted resilience-building interventions to combat acute food insecurity affecting over 20 million people.

• Acute food insecurity in Sudan has reached record levels, with the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) reporting that over 20 million people, or 42% of the population, are currently experiencing it.
• Agricultural production has declined significantly; the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry reported only 10 million hectares planted this year compared to 23 million last year, a potential 41% decrease. This is driven by a lack of input financing, high fuel prices leading to the abandonment of mechanization, and farmer fear of conflict.
• Sudan's agri-processing capacity has been severely crippled because it was concentrated in Khartoum. The oil pressing sector, the country's largest agri-processing industry, had over 60 facilities in Khartoum before the conflict, and an estimated 40% of wheat milling capacity in the city is now non-operational.
• The financial system has collapsed due to the failure of the Electronic Banking Services (EBS) switch, which provided centralized clearing and settlement. EBS is currently down and not expected to return in the medium-term because one set of servers was destroyed and backup servers in Khartoum are inaccessible.
• Formal banking is largely non-operational, with only 5 to 6 of Sudan's 37 banks currently functioning. This has led to a surge in digital financial services like MTN's MoMo, the Cashi app, and the Bank of Khartoum's bankak app, as well as an increase in informal 'hawala' payment networks.
• The report prioritizes sorghum, horticulture, and oilseeds as critical value chains for intervention, focusing on 'safe' states including Gedarif, Gezira, Kassala, Northern, and Sennar. Millet and wheat were deprioritized due to insecurity in production areas or existing large-scale donor initiatives.

APA

FSD Africa (2023). Rapid Assessment of Food and Payment Systems in Sudan for a Coordinated Food Security Emergency Response. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/23-11-24-Sudan-Emergency-Response-rapid-assessment-External.pdf

Chicago

FSD Africa. Rapid Assessment of Food and Payment Systems in Sudan for a Coordinated Food Security Emergency Response. 2023. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/23-11-24-Sudan-Emergency-Response-rapid-assessment-External.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=FSD Africa |title=Rapid Assessment of Food and Payment Systems in Sudan for a Coordinated Food Security Emergency Response |date=November 2023 |url=https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/23-11-24-Sudan-Emergency-Response-rapid-assessment-External.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fsdafrica2023rapid, author = {{FSD Africa}}, title = {{Rapid Assessment of Food and Payment Systems in Sudan for a Coordinated Food Security Emergency Response}}, institution = {FSD Africa}, year = {2023}, month = nov, url = {https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/23-11-24-Sudan-Emergency-Response-rapid-assessment-External.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }