How+Refugees+impact+the+ECONOMY

Caroline K.

Sudan's suffering economy and overall corruption is caused by several aspects of its weak government, as well as the hardships caused by famine, and the flow of refugees from other nations.

Primarily, agriculture is the foundation for Sudan's economy. There was hope for economic improvement in the 1970s when financial help was to be received from the United States and the European Community ("Sudan - The Economy"). Additional development plans were also established, such as the Ten-Year Plan of Economic and Social Development. Unfortunately, insufficient funding led to their downfall ("Sudan - Economic Development"). Any hope for progress with these plans was further dashed when the civil war resumed in 1983, costing roughly one million Sudanese Dinars per day, or $46,926. Furthermore, severely decreased rainfall has lead to droughts and one of Sudan's worst famines of the century. With agriculture being Sudan's primary source of income, this added further strain to its economy. Lastly, and specific to this topic, refugees from Sudan, as well as from other nations, are preventing a successful economy. These foreign refugees are coming from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Chad. Help has been offered to Sudan from international humanitarian agencies, but to no avail. The government continuously turns them down ("Sudan - The Economy").

In addition to the suffering they experience from war, the Sudanese people, especially those of the south, are being persecuted by the Islamic government in the north. In the 1980s, already starving southerners were denied internationally-donated supplies. This is, in fact, a frequently used tactic (better known as starvation) by military leaders to try and enforce their own political and religious views. As a result, the economy has been suffering as well. "By 1989, inflation had risen by 80%, and the debt had risen to $13 billion..." ("Sudanese Refugees"). To escape such persecution, southerners seek refuge in other countries. Those fleeing the devastated Sudanese countryside often seek relief in the cities, which in turn causes a dramatic swell in population, further straining the economy there ("Sudanese Refugees").

Overall, refugees flowing into Sudan from other countries, out of Sudan, and from some parts of Sudan to another are all partially responsible for a weakened economy. Unfortunately, any improvement will be nearly impossible until the deeply-rooted reasons for the civil war and corrupt government can finally be solved.