Sudan says it received $1 billion in Forex deposits from Saudi Arabia

August 12, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese government disclosed that it received $1 billion dollar in central bank deposits from Saudi Arabia in July and August.

“Sudan’s central bank received an investment deposit from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia of $1 billion. Last month we received $500 million, and we received the second part this month,” Finance ministry Undersecretary Abdel-Rahman Dirar told reporters according to Reuters.

Dirar did not disclose the terms of this deposit such as the interest rate or maturity date.

Last month, Dirar told Bloomberg in an interview that Arab Gulf states have provided Sudan with $2 billion in concessional loans recently.

He declined to name the donors or detail when the funds were received except to say that they would be repaid in “coming years”.

Sudanese officials have previously said that they expect to see large cash inflows from Arab Gulf states following Khartoum’s decision to join Saudi-led military coalition against Houthi rebels in Yemen last March.

But the Saudi ambassador in Khartoum, Faisal Hamed Al-Muallah, dismissed these speculations saying they are only prepared to offer investments.

The value of the Sudanese currency has eroded dramatically following the secession of the oil-rich south and the central bank has been unable to defend it in the market because of low currency reserves.

Meanwhile, presidential assistant Musa Mohamed Ahmed on Wednesday discussed with the Saudi ambassador ways for promoting ties between the two countries.

Al-Muallah said in statements following the meeting that relations between the two nations are strong and well-established, expressing his country’s keenness to support Sudan in development and education domains.

He pointed out that the meeting discussed bilateral ties and the new items which have been added to the agenda of the joint ministerial committee, saying those items would enhance cooperation between the two countries.

The Saudi envoy further said the meeting discussed the situation in the Gulf states besides the recent development of the war in Yemen.

Last April, the Saudi minister of agriculture, Abdel-Rahman Ibn Abdel-Muhissn al-Fadli discussed in Khartoum opportunities for cooperation between the two countries in the service, trade and economic domains.

Also, a high-level technical delegation from Saudi Arabia discussed in Khartoum ways for implementing the Arab food security initiative in Sudan.

According to the Sudanese government, the Arab Gulf states investments in Sudan amounts to $20 billion including $10 billion from Saudi Arabia followed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with $6 billion and Kuwait with $5 billion.

(ST)