Aisha pours another cup of tea at her makeshift outdoor stand, hoping the day’s sales will help keep her family afloat.
asserted
sales → pour → family
The 27-year-old sells tea and coffee in Sudan’s second-largest city, Port Sudan, trying to provide for her parents and four brothers in a country now in its fourth year of war.
asserted
old → sell → war
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asserted
Trump → go → Houthis
The conflict has led to a plunge in the value of the Sudanese pound and rising costs for transportation and essential goods.
asserted
conflict → lead → transportation
Those aren’t just abstract economic indicators for Aisha: they’re reflected in the widening gap between what she earns and what her family needs each month.
asserted
family → reflect → what
“Before the war, a cup of coffee cost 1,000 Sudanese pounds ($1.70 at pre-war rates),” Aisha told Al Jazeera.
asserted
Aisha → cost → Jazeera
“I could earn about 30,000 pounds a day ($50) and that was enough to cover my family’s needs.”
uncertain
that → earn → needs
Aisha now charges 3,000 pounds ($0.40 at current rates) for coffee and 1,500 pounds ($0.20) for tea, earning between 70,000 pounds ($9.30) and 100,000 pounds ($13.30) a day.
asserted
Aisha → charge → pounds
But that increase in earnings has been swallowed by rising costs – both for her business and the day-to-day expenses she needs to feed and house her family.
asserted
she → swallow → family
Before the war, she was able to buy five pieces of bread for 1,000 pounds ($0.10) but that same amount now only buys her three.
asserted
amount → buy → three
The cost of a kilogram of sugar has risen from 4,000 pounds ($0.45) to 7,000 pounds ($0.90).
asserted
cost → rise → pounds
Her daily transportation costs from her home to her coffee and tea stand have now quadrupled.
asserted
costs → quadruple → stand
Beef now costs 68,000 pounds ($9) per kilogram – far outside her budget.
asserted
Beef → cost → budget
Even lentils, a more affordable staple, now costs about 16,000 pounds ($2.10) a kilogram.
asserted
lentils → cost → pounds
Healthcare and education costs have also risen, adding another layer of pressure for families already exhausted by years of war.
asserted
costs → rise → war
Aisha’s experience is shared across Sudan, where the war has disrupted production and exports, creating a shortage of foreign currency and weakening the country’s currency.
asserted
war → share → currency
Inflation eases, but prices keep rising
asserted
prices → ease → ?
The war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) – which controls Port Sudan – and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has taken a toll on Sudan’s economy and humanitarian conditions since the conflict began in April 2023.
asserted
conflict → control → April
According to Sudan’s Central Bureau of Statistics, annual inflation stood at over 41 percent in July, down from 51 percent in June.
uncertain
inflation → accord → June
But that slowdown does not mean prices fell: The overall consumer price index still rose nearly 1.5 percent between June and July, meaning that prices were continuing to increase but at a slower annual rate, putting further pressure on household purchasing power.
asserted
prices → mean → power
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimated that Sudan lost about $6.4bn in gross domestic product in 2023 alone.
asserted
Sudan → estimate → 2023
UNDP said the economy has shrunk by more than 40 percent during the war while one-third of businesses have closed.
asserted
third → say → businesses
A drop in the pound’s value
The collapse of the Sudanese pound has accelerated sharply.
asserted
collapse → accelerate → pound
Before the war, $1 traded for roughly 600 Sudanese pounds.
asserted
1 → trade → pounds
By September 22, black market currency traders were quoting 7,500 pounds to the dollar, with rates varying between cities and dealers.
asserted
rates → quote → cities
Economic analyst Mohyeldin Mohamed attributed the pound’s depreciation to several factors, including the war disrupting productive industries and an “economic war” involving the RSF’s alleged looting and smuggling of resources such as gold and gum arabic.
asserted
war → attribute → gold
“The response should combine immediate measures with longer-term reforms” Mohamed told Al Jazeera.
asserted
Mohamed → combine → Jazeera
In the short term, he called for increased domestic food production utilising the country’s natural resources, stronger support for sectors that drive economic growth and more effective tax revenue collection.
asserted
that → call → growth
He also said Sudan needs clearer policies to channel gold revenues into official foreign currency earnings, helping to stabilise the economy.
asserted
Sudan → say → economy
Then, over the longer term, Mohamed said Sudan needed structural reforms to support producers, particularly in agriculture and livestock, areas where he says the country has a comparative advantage.
asserted
country → say → advantage
Mohamed argued that Sudan could reform its gold sector to reduce reliance on informal, small-scale mining, and instead expand regulated mining while developing partnerships with the private sector to potentially increase production.
uncertain
Sudan → argue → production
This, he said, would increase the amount of government revenue from the extraction and sale of gold.
asserted
he → say → gold
He also called for lowering production costs, particularly for farmers struggling with the price of fertilisers, pesticides, and other agricultural supplies.
asserted
He → call → fertilisers
More broadly, the analyst argued for cutting reliance on imports – particularly flour and medicine – and expanding forestry and gum arabic production to boost foreign currency earnings through exports.
asserted
analyst → argue → exports
Human cost of a weaker pound
For families already struggling to cope with the war, the weakening Sudanese pound is making everyday survival increasingly difficult.
asserted
survival → struggle → war
The currency has struggled since the war began in April 2023.
asserted
war → struggle → April
Disrupted domestic production and trade have reduced exports and foreign currency earnings, while damage to the banking system and falling government revenues have also added pressure on the Sudanese pound.
asserted
damage → reduce → pound
With more people and businesses competing for scarce foreign currency, they have to offer more Sudanese pounds to obtain it, weakening the pound and driving up the prices of locally produced goods.
Maryam Ibrahim, a Sudanese aid worker and an economics researcher who previously worked with the UN, said the sharp decline in the currency has eroded household purchasing power, leaving salaries and savings unable to keep pace with rising prices.
asserted
decline → compete → prices
“The main impact of the currency’s decline is the loss of purchasing power,” Ibrahim said.
asserted
Ibrahim → say → power
“Salaries and savings are no longer enough to cover household needs.”
asserted
Salaries → cover → needs
…and 11 more, not listed.
The Aporia
