Sudan faces growing famine risk as severe drought threatens harvest

JULY 31, 2026 (GEDAREF) – Spreading drought across Sudan’s key agricultural regions is threatening to ruin the 2026 rainfed crop season, heightening risks of widespread famine in areas already devastated by civil war.

Farmers in Gedaref state, long considered Sudan’s primary grain producer, say prolonged dry spells have left soil uncultivable nearly two months into the rainy season.

“The delay in rains has completely upended our farming schedules,” said Osman Abakar, a farmer in southern Gedaref. “Even if rain falls later, crop yields will be severely impacted.”

The agricultural downturn is particularly acute in conflict-hit Darfur and Kordofan, where fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has already displaced millions and forced vast farmland out of production.

Local activists warn that a failed harvest will exacerbate an already dire humanitarian crisis, as trade routes remain blocked and food prices surge. A bag of staple sorghum in local markets has jumped from 110,000 to nearly 170,000 Sudanese pounds in recent weeks.

Agricultural experts say delayed rains leave staple crops like sorghum and sesame vulnerable to heat stress and pests, threatening total yields across rainfed sectors that supply most of the nation’s food.

Compounding the crisis, water levels along the Nile River have dropped. Former water ministry officials attribute the decline to uncoordinated operations at Ethiopia’s Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, as ongoing conflict in Sudan has disrupted bilateral technical communication.

Despite the bleak outlook, heavy rainfall reported in parts of eastern Sudan late Friday offered brief relief to farmers hoping to salvage remaining crop cycles.