CAIRO: Egyptian goods have begun reentering Sudan in recent days after a disruption due to protests in Khartoum.
Egyptian exporters had complained about the disruption of cargo to Sudan due to the Sudanese demonstrations on the Sharyan Al-Shamal road linking the cities of Halfa and Khartoum.
Sudanese farmers took to protesting against the government’s decision to raise the price of electricity for agricultural consumption from 1.6 ($.004) to 9 Sudanese pounds since the beginning of this year.
Wagih Besada, a member of the Export Council for Building Materials, said that the last two weeks witnessed a breakthrough in the crisis that stopped the transportation of goods to Sudan, and the situation is now returning to normal.
In statements to local newspapers, Besada explained that Sudan is one of the most important markets receiving construction materials from Egypt and that Egyptian companies are keen to continue exporting to it despite challenges.
According to previous statements, more than 600 Egyptian trucks had stopped on the border between Egypt and Sudan, extending for a distance of about 30 km inside Egyptian territory as they waited for the road to open.
Walid Gamal El-Din, head of the Export Council for Building Materials, said that Sudan is among the top 10 importing countries of building materials from Egypt, ranking ninth last year.
He revealed that the sector’s exports to Sudan recorded $141 million during 2021, compared to $130 million in 2020, a growth of 9 percent.
Egyptian exports to Sudan include finished products, chemicals, foodstuffs, building materials, machinery and equipment. In return, Egypt imports live animals, sesame, groundnuts and cotton from Sudan.
