Scarcity and doubling prices of cooking gas in Khartoum

Citizens in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, complained about the scarcity of cooking gas and the absurdly high prices on the black market, noting that the price per a cylinder has skyrocketed to 40,000 SDG.

Cooking gas prices had witnessed an increase in a significantly unprecedented way due to the historic collapse of the value of the Sudanese pound “SDG,” which -for context- amounted to an exchange rate of approximately 1,500 Sudanese pounds per US dollar. These events take place amidst a stifling humanitarian crisis caused by the ongoing war between the Army and Rapid Support Forces that broke out in April of last year.

Mohammed Al-Mubarak, a citizen from southern Khartoum, told Assayha that the scarcity of cooking gas and the difficult economic conditions pushed the citizens to use firewood instead, cutting down trees, and using charcoal to prepare food due to the scarcity of cooking gas and the hefty prices on the black market.

Assayha uncovered information pertaining to the presence of brokers selling gas cylinders at exorbitant prices, and an active market specializing in selling cooking gas as well as empty cylinders on the black market, taking full advantage of the citizens’ urgent need for cooking gas.

The ongoing war has doubled the suffering of the Sudanese people and hindered their access to food and clean water, in addition to limiting the freedom of movement of an estimated 7 million citizens still living in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum.

Sudanese people are living in combat areas in the worst possible condition, with no security, food or clean water, amidst the crushing failure to escape from these areas due to the lack of safe routes to cross outside the circle of war.