World Bank loans Sudan $100m to combat deep food insecurity

The World Bank has released $100 million for the World Food Program to tackle “deep food insecurity” for 2 million people in Sudan.

The Washington-based institution in a statement said the funds will help provide an “emergency safety net” amid worsening hunger in the northeast African nation “caused by a poor harvest and rising international food prices.”

Sudan is also feeling the pain of high grain prices caused by the Russia-Ukraine crisis. “The funds will be channeled solely through the WFP to scale up the food security response and provide direct support to the most vulnerable people of Sudan,” the bank said. 2 million people will benefit from the program with cash and food.

The European Union, United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia and several other Western nations are backing up the program. This is the first financial support by the bank since October after the military removed a civilian-led government in place since the ouster of former leader Omar Bashir in 2019.

The bank had since October suspended its disbursements for operations in the country. Inflation, AFP reports, is approaching 200 percent, the currency is in free-fall and the price of bread has increased tenfold since the coup.