KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Sudan hopes to see its economy grow 6.4 percent in 2016, up from 5.3 percent in 2015, as the price of oil imports falls, the government said in a budget proposal it approved on Tuesday.
The draft budget is set to be discussed by parliament on Wednesday, before a final vote. The 2015 budget had a projected growth rate of 3.6 percent but the decline in oil prices meant the government could surpass that.
"The new budget encourages local production of wheat, sugar, and medicine in Sudan and does not include any lifting of subsidies right now," said government spokesman Omar Saleh.
Sudan's economy was hit hard in 2011 when the south seceded, taking with it three-quarters of the country's oil, estimated at 5 billion barrels of proven reserves by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The Sudanese pound fell as the country lost a key source of foreign exchange, used to fund purchases of food, and inflation shot up.
In 2013, the government cut fuel subsidies in an effort to curb its spending. That pushed the inflation rate up to nearly 50 percent and prompted major protests against the government.
But as an importer of oil, Sudan is now benefiting from a slump of more than 40 percent in global oil prices since June 2014.
Inflation has slowed to 17.9 percent in 2015, Saleh said, and the government targets an inflation rate of 13 percent and an unemployment rate of 18 percent in 2016.
(Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz; Writing by Ahmed Aboulenein; Editing by Larry King)
Newer articles:
- South Sudan: Economic Development 2015 - 16/12/2015 17:14
- South Sudan: Devastation of civil war continues, 2 years on - 16/12/2015 12:54
- South Sudan pound drops 85pc in two days as country scraps fixed exchange - 16/12/2015 11:29
- South Sudan: Civil war drags on, even after peace treaty - 16/12/2015 06:32
- S. Sudan enters 3rd year of war with no solution in sight - 16/12/2015 05:45
Older news items
- South Sudan: The complex factors of famine - 16/12/2015 00:44
- South Sudan: 15,000 children recruited to fight - 16/12/2015 00:41
- Two-year conflict has led to ‘unrelenting crisis’ for South Sudan’s children, UN agencies warn - 15/12/2015 17:41
- South Sudan's War Has Raged For Two Years, Making Some People Very Rich - 15/12/2015 17:31
- Two years of South Sudan war with peace on paper only - 15/12/2015 10:12
Latest news items (all categories):
- South Sudan vows probe after two Ethiopian peacekeepers killed in Jonglei ambush; Ethiopia, UN and Egypt condemn attack - 26/08/2026 13:06
- Dozens killed in rebel attacks on Sudan’s Kordofan, medical group says - 26/08/2026 13:03
- The truth about the South Sudanese vice president being prevented from travelling to Kenya - 26/08/2026 13:01
- WHO Regional Office Country Focus Coordinator visits South Sudan to strengthen health sector support - 26/08/2026 12:58
- South Sudanese Catholic Bishop Presents Women’s Leadership as Alternative Ahead of First-Ever General Election - 26/08/2026 12:56
Random articles (all categories):
- Tens of thousands of Sudanese again demonstrate against military rule - 14/12/2021 02:55
- Sudan pound again under pressure after devaluation - Ahram Online - 31/05/2012 12:00
- UPDATE 2-South Sudan resumes oil output after ending row with Sudan over ... - Reuters UK - 06/04/2013 10:04
- South Sudan eases oil dispute with BB Energy, awards 3 crude cargoes to restore access to crude financing - 08/07/2026 18:35
- South Sudan archbishop urges government and opposition to end violence before peace talks - 04/04/2018 09:58
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 148898 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 28003 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 25085 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 24393 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 22338 times
