Economy Type
**Gold, Agriculture & Conflict-Disrupted Red Sea Economy
(Gold and Agriculture-based Conflict-Collapse Red Sea Economy)**
Sudan is classified as a Gold, Agriculture & Conflict-Disrupted Red Sea Economy .
This is because, although it possesses an economic base of gold, sesame, gum arabic, livestock, grain, and Red Sea ports, production facilities, urban economy, finance, transportation, and food systems have been extensively damaged by armed conflict that began in April 2023.
The World Bank estimated that the Sudanese economy rebounded by about 3.1% in 2025 due to low base effects and some production recovery. The IMF forecasts a real GDP growth rate of 0.7% and a consumer price inflation rate of 75.1% in 2026. This means that despite statistically positive growth, the economy is far from normalization.
Country Definition
Although Sudan possesses gold, agriculture, livestock, arabic gum, and a Red Sea port, it is a major reconstruction target country in Northeast Africa that must restore its territory, economy, and supply chains fragmented by civil war, and reconnect its national finances and food systems.
Why It Matters
Sudan is a large country in Northeast Africa that borders Egypt, Libya, Chad, the Central African Republic, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and Eritrea, and connects to the Red Sea.
Port Sudan is a key hub for Red Sea logistics and foreign trade, and plays a strategic role in the movement of crude oil, fuel, food, and aid supplies between Sudan and South Sudan. Agriculture and livestock farming form the livelihoods of the majority of the population, and gold is a core source of foreign currency.
However, since 2023, the war has destroyed production, market, and administrative systems in the capital region and major areas such as Darfur and Kordofan. The World Bank assesses that the conflict has caused severe losses across society and the economy, and that the prospects for recovery are uncertain unless peace is restored.
Warnings have been raised that by 2026, approximately 19.5 million people will face severe food insecurity, and more than 825,000 children could be at risk of life-threatening severe malnutrition.
Korea Perspective
For South Korea, Sudan is currently a target for humanitarian aid and future reconstruction cooperation rather than a general export or investment market.
In the short term, food, medicine, water purification, solar power, mobile medical services, and disaster logistics are important. Distributed equipment capable of operating even in power outages or isolated areas is prioritized.
In the mid-to-long term, if peace is established, there is potential for cooperation in the fields of agricultural machinery, irrigation, grain storage, livestock quarantine, gold refining and tracking, solar power and ESS, ports, roads, railways, and e-administration.
Key Keywords
- Gold Economy
- Agriculture & Livestock
- Gum Arabic
- Red Sea Logistics
- Port Sudan
- Civil Conflict
- Food Security
- Humanitarian Supply Chain
- Reconstruction
- Korea–Sudan Cooperation
Sudan is a country connecting Northeast Africa, the Sahel, and the Red Sea. While Khartoum is the official capital, Port Sudan has served as the de facto center for government administration and external relations since the war.
The political system is closer to an abnormal transitional regime with divided state institutions, as the transition between the military and civilian forces has not yet been completed. The currency is the Sudanese pound, and the official languages are Arabic and English.
The population projected by the IMF for 2026 is approximately 51.73 million. However, due to large-scale domestic displacement and the movement of refugees abroad, it is difficult to determine the actual regional population and the size of the consumer market.
Sudan is a member of the African Union, the Arab League, the Intergovernmental Organization for Development (OGAD), COMESA, and the WTO. However, the war has significantly weakened the government's capacity for policy implementation, revenue management, trade statistics, and customs clearance.
Key Features
- Strategic location connecting the Red Sea and the Sahel
- A resource economy centered on gold, agriculture, and livestock
- Foreign trade centered on Port Sudan
- Extensive farmland and the Nile River system
- Territorial and administrative segmentation due to war
- Large-scale domestic displacement and refugees
- High inflation and currency depreciation
- Collapse of food, health, and education systems
- Expansion of the informal economy and smuggling
The Sudanese economy has been centered on agriculture, livestock farming, gold mining, wholesale and retail trade, transportation, construction, and public services.
Since South Sudan's independence, oil revenues have decreased significantly, increasing the importance of gold, agricultural products, taxes, and overseas remittances. However, the 2023 war simultaneously damaged Khartoum's financial, manufacturing, and commercial functions, as well as the agricultural and logistics systems of many regions.
The World Bank estimated that real GDP rebounded by 3.1% in 2025 following severe economic contractions in 2023 and 2024. However, this is based on low comparison standards and the resumption of production in some regions, and does not signify a recovery to pre-war levels of production and income.
The IMF projects a growth rate of 0.7%, an inflation rate of 75.1%, nominal GDP of approximately $44.7 billion, and GDP per capita of approximately $864 in 2026. As these estimates are based on the assumption that the war will continue, uncertainty remains very high.
Market characteristics
- Markets segmented by region
- Cash, gold, and foreign currency-centered trading
- Hyper-high inflation and exchange rate instability
- Demand for survival goods prioritized over consumption
- High proportion of government and international organization procurement
- Weakening of official financial and credit functions
- Transportation and security costs surge
- Product shortages and regional price disparities
- Decline in the reliability of statistics and corporate information
MarketHub Point
Market analysis of Sudan requires an approach that distinguishes regional control and logistical accessibility—such as Port Sudan, the North, the East, the Central, and Darfur—rather than viewing the entire country as a single market.
Agriculture is Sudan's most important subsistence and export industry. Major crops include sorghum, millet, wheat, sesame, peanuts, cotton, sugarcane, and vegetables, and an irrigation agriculture base exists in the Nile River basin.
Sudan is a global producer of gum arabic and occupies a significant position in the supply chains for food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and industrial additives. Sesame seeds, peanuts, and livestock products have also been exported to Gulf and Asian markets.
Cattle, sheep, goats, and camels are important in the livestock industry. While live animals and meat can be exported to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Gulf countries, quarantine, feed, water, slaughterhouse, and refrigeration facilities are lacking, and transportation routes are unstable due to war.
Gold is a key source of foreign currency, but there is a lot of small-scale, informal mining and smuggling. Since the war, the risks of financing by armed groups, lack of transparency in transactions, environmental pollution, and international sanctions have increased.
The FAO announced that it supported approximately 827,000 farms by distributing about 8,393 tons of certified seeds to support agricultural production in 2025. This demonstrates both the potential of Sudanese agriculture and the reality that its self-sufficiency system relies on external support.
Key industries
- Gold mining and trading
- Grains, sesame, and peanuts
- Arabian gum
- Livestock and live animal exports
- Cotton and fiber raw materials
- food processing
- Crude oil, refining, pipeline
- Ports and Transport
- Construction and Reconstruction
- solar power and distributed power
core industrial base
- vast arable land
- Nile River and groundwater resources
- Large-scale livestock resources
- Gold and some mineral resources
- Arabian gum production base
- Red Sea coast and Port Sudan
- Accessibility to Egypt and Gulf markets
- High reconstruction demand
MarketHub Point
Sudan's industrial recovery must begin not with expanding gold exports, but with normalizing agriculture, livestock, food processing, power, and logistics to simultaneously restore the livelihoods of the people and foreign currency earnings.
Sudan's major exports are gold, sesame seeds, gum arabic, live livestock, meat, peanuts, cotton, and some crude oil products.
Major imports are wheat, food, fuel, pharmaceuticals, machinery, automobiles, electrical equipment, and construction materials.
Major trading partners are the United Arab Emirates, China, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, India, Turkey, and neighboring African countries. A significant portion of gold is exported to the UAE and other destinations, while livestock and agricultural products are exported to the Gulf and Egyptian markets.
The core of foreign trade is port transport. However, as inland roads, railways, warehouses, and fuel networks are destroyed or control is fragmented, it is difficult to transport goods to their final destinations even if they arrive at ports.
According to FAO data, the prices of sorghum and millet in April 2025 were more than four times higher than in March 2023, just before the war. Food prices were driven up by not only reduced production but also trade disruptions, high input costs, and transportation difficulties.
Major trading and partner countries
- United Arab Emirates
- china
- Saudi Arabia
- Egypt
- India
- Turkey
- South Sudan
- Ethiopia
- Chad
- korea
Supply chain characteristics
- External logistics concentrated in Port Sudan
- Gold and agricultural product exports
- Dependence on imports of food, fuel, and medicine
- Destruction of roads, railways, and warehouses
- Increase in checkpoints, tolls, and security costs
- Regional Control and Customs Differences
- Fuel shortages and transportation disruptions
- Expansion of unofficial border trade and smuggling
- The high importance of humanitarian logistics
MarketHub Point
In the Sudanese supply chain, arrival at the port does not mark the completion of the transaction; it must be designed as a single integrated project encompassing inland access, security, fuel, warehousing, and local distribution.
Currently, general commercial investment in Sudan carries very high risk. Short-term opportunities are concentrated in humanitarian aid, survival infrastructure, and supply chain recovery.
In the food sector, seeds, irrigation pumps, small agricultural machinery, grain dryers, mobile mills, storage silos, and food inspection equipment are required.
In the energy sector, solar power, ESS, mini-grids, independent power sources for hospitals, water purification facilities, and telecommunication base stations, and mobile power generation facilities are suitable.
In the health and water sectors, there is high demand for mobile clinics, medical devices, pharmaceutical and vaccine cold chains, water purification equipment, groundwater pumps, and sanitation facilities.
After peace, a large-scale reconstruction market may be formed, including ports, roads, railways, housing, telecommunications, schools, hospitals, agricultural processing, and e-government.
Key Opportunities
- humanitarian logistics
- Seeds, agricultural machinery, irrigation
- Grain storage and food processing
- Solar power, ESS, and mini-grid
- Water purification, sanitation, and groundwater
- Medical devices and mobile hospitals
- Pharmaceutical cold chain
- Livestock quarantine and slaughter
- Port, road, and railway restoration
- Mobile communication and satellite communication
- Electronic Customs and Public Finance
- Landmines, disasters, and safety equipment
Major Risks
- War, Terror, Kidnapping
- Segmentation of state and territorial control
- International Sanctions and Export Controls
- Unable to enforce contracts or property rights
- Ultra-high inflation and exchange rate risk
- Bank, remittance, and payment disruptions
- Port, Road, and Fuel Instability
- Risk of diversion and spoilage of materials
- Sanctions risk on gold and resource trading
- Restrictions on humanitarian access
- Food and health crisis
- Difficulty in verifying data and partners
Sudan's economic outlook depends more on whether the war ends than on general economic variables.
The IMF forecasts 0.7% growth in 2026 but simultaneously projects a very high inflation rate of 75.1%. This means that some production recovery will be difficult to offset the collapse of monetary, fiscal, and supply chains.
The World Bank’s 2025 economic outlook analyzed that growth could return to positive growth on the premise of a peaceful resolution, and assessed that post-war recovery requires macroeconomic stability, the restoration of public institutions, the recovery of the financial and private sectors, and the reconstruction of infrastructure.
The food situation in 2026 remains critical. The FAO warns that Sudan is one of the world's largest crises of hunger and internal displacement, and that parts of Darfur and Kordofan could face the risk of famine if the situation persists.
In the mid-to-long term, if a peace agreement and a unified government are established, there may be a demand for rapid recovery centered on agriculture, livestock, gold, ports, electricity, and urban reconstruction. However, if institutions, fiscal, judicial, and financial sectors are not rebuilt simultaneously, there is a risk that resources and aid will flow back into a conflict economy.
Changes to Watch Out For in the Future
- armistice and peace negotiations
- Control of the capital and major cities
- Darfur and Kordofan situation
- Port Sudan operation
- Food prices and famine risk
- Refugee return
- Exchange rates, currency, and central banks
- Gold production, export, and sanctions
- Agriculture sowing and harvesting
- Access to international aid
- South Sudan oil pipeline
- Post-war reconstruction finance
Market Position
Red Sea Agriculture, Gold & Post-Conflict Reconstruction Market
A large-scale reconstruction market in Northeast Africa that must rebuild food, power, logistics, cities, and public systems based on gold, agriculture, livestock, and Red Sea ports
Key Opportunities
- humanitarian food and medical
- Agricultural machinery and irrigation
- Grain storage and food processing
- solar power and distributed power
- Water purification and sanitation
- Medical devices and cold chain
- Livestock Quarantine and Meat Processing
- Ports, roads, and railways
- Telecommunications and public data
- Disaster, Safety, and Recovery Equipment
Recommended Strategy
Observe
Continuously monitor front lines, ceasefires, ports, sanctions, food, exchange rates, access to international aid, and regional control.
↓
Prepare
We cooperate with international organizations, official development finance institutions, and humanitarian agencies, and prepare a business structure that includes prevention of diversion of materials, sanctions compliance, security, traceability, and on-site maintenance.
↓
Participate
Currently, participation is limited to international organization procurement and humanitarian assistance in the fields of food, health, water, and electricity, and will be gradually expanded to agriculture, logistics, energy, and urban reconstruction after peace is established.
Final Assessment
Although Sudan possesses high potential in gold, agriculture, livestock, and the Red Sea port, it is currently a large-scale vulnerable reconstruction state where ending the war and restoring food, currency, administration, and supply chains take precedence over all economic activities.
Scope of investigation
This document was prepared by cross-referencing the latest economic and humanitarian data related to Sudan with international financial institutions and the Food and Agriculture Organization.
International organizations and regional organizations
- International Monetary Fund
- World Bank
- World Trade Organization
- Food and Agriculture Organization
- World Food Programme
- African Development Bank
- African Union
- Intergovernmental Authority on Development
- United Nations Development Program
Key verification data
- IMF Sudan Country Data 2026
- IMF World Economic Outlook, April 2026
- World Bank Sudan Economic Update, May 2025
- World Bank Sudan Macro Poverty Outlook 2026
- FAO Sudan Food Security Assessment 2025–2026
- FAO Sudan Emergency and Resilience Reports
- WTO Trade Profiles
- International data related to Sudan's agriculture, livestock, gold, ports, and humanitarian supply chains
Writing Verification
This document was written based on the following criteria.
- Apply WCI-001 Golden Template Table of Contents Order
- Maintain from 0. Country Summary to 8. References & Writing Verification
- Reflecting the 2025 economic rebound estimate and the 2026 IMF forecast
- Prioritize the use of IMF, World Bank, and FAO data
- Reflecting characteristics of gold, agriculture, livestock, gum of Arabia, and Red Sea ports
- Separate review of war, food, price, currency, and logistics risks
- Application of the Republic of Korea's Humanitarian, Agriculture, Electricity, Health, and Reconstruction Cooperation Perspectives
- In fact, distinguishing between forecasts and MarketHub's judgment
- Describe humanitarian aid and reconstruction conditions over commercial opportunities in accordance with the reality of vulnerable countries.
- Maintaining an appropriate amount considering the overall balance of WCI
Sudan is a large resource- and agricultural country in Northeast Africa, possessing gold, agriculture, livestock, gum arabic, and a Red Sea port.
However, the war that began in 2023 caused extensive damage to the metropolitan area, agricultural zones, financial, manufacturing, transportation networks, and public services.
The World Bank estimates that the economy rebounded by about 3.1% in 2025, but this is due to low base effects and the resumption of production in some regions. The IMF forecasts a growth rate of 0.7% and an inflation rate of 75.1% in 2026.
Sudan's most serious problem is food and survival systems rather than GDP. It is projected that approximately 19.5 million people will face severe food insecurity by 2026, and some regions remain at risk of famine.
Economic recovery is possible only if a ceasefire and an integrated national system, the return of refugees, the resumption of agricultural production, the restoration of logistics between Port Sudan and the inland, and the normalization of currency and banking systems are established beforehand.
The Republic of Korea can currently cooperate with international organizations in the fields of food, water purification, medical services, solar power, agricultural seeds and equipment, and humanitarian logistics.
After the establishment of peace, agricultural machinery, grain storage, livestock quarantine, gold refining and tracking, solar power and ESS, ports, roads, railways, and e-government could become major areas of reconstruction cooperation.
Final evaluation
Sudan possesses potential for gold, agriculture, livestock, and Red Sea logistics, but it is a key reconstruction nation in Northeast Africa that must end the war and reconnect food, currency, administration, and infrastructure.