Last Economic Procedures in Sudan

Because of the independent political approach adopted by the Sudan since 1989 and its attempts to get out of international and American hegemony in particular. The Sudan faces economic problems since 1990 a result of the economic embargo and the American sanctions which deprived it from utilize of the international subsidies and funds or dealing with the global industrial companies, the matter which incapacitated many of the Sudanese industries because of the banning of importing the spare parts such as the Sudanese airline (Sudan Air) which its fleet was affected by this banning and caused many accidents that led to death for number of civilians and blocked the way before the foreign investments. These sanctions deprived the Sudan of taking advantage of the technology in all areas, even the humanitarian medical in addition to the banning imposed on the weapons in the light of insurgence war that lasted for decades and drained lots of resources. The American Administration deliberately went on breaking the Sudanese economic structure through not allowing the Chevron American Company to continue to implement the Sudanese oil project and it has been brought out of the Sudan. The Canadian and Asian companies, which took the place of the Chevron, were exposed to American pressures, forced them to withdraw from the oil sector till the Chinese companies currently assume such sector. Stages of targeting the Sudanese economic has evolved to a degree that Shifaa Pharmaceutical Factory was exposed to an American missile bombardment led to the destruction of it to form a major blow to the economy and to deprive millions of Sudanese people of treatment and essential medicines. The steps of constriction have continued against the investing companies in Sudan through preventing Asian companies to complete one of the largest sugar factories by buying most of its shares prior to completion of the factory to stop its inauguration on the deadline. 
     Despite the sanctions and economic embargo imposed on Sudan. The Sudan has an evident economic boom and established a number of infrastructure projects but the secession of southern Sudan, which planned for and sponsored by America for the purpose of depriving the Sudan of the oil resources which are mostly concentrated in its southern areas. The Southern Sudan which is supported by U.S. started to implement an economic collapse in the Sudan on the ground as soon as the declaration of secession to let the first of these steps begin with making the Southern Sudan replace its currency from one party without coordination with the Sudan in order to make the central bank in Khartoum loses sizable financial balances but the Sudan completed a similar move for its part and make replacement of its currency in order to avoid losses. The southern Sudan continued its antagonistic steps to refrain from payment of financial charges as a result crossing its oil through the Sudan for exportation in the Red Sea and used the Sudanese oil facilities. When the Sudan proceeded in extracting its financial dues of oil in kind, the southern Sudan has completely stopped pumping its oil to deprive the Sudan of obtaining any financial returns of hard currency to let this coincides with the war launched by the southern Sudan on the Sudanese territories by the southern army existed in the Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile. This army killed many people and displaced another without justification except more of attrition against the Sudanese economy in addition to support of the Southern Sudan for a number of armed movements from Darfur in order to expand the war to put more economic and political pressure. Here comes the most daring and reckless move by the Southern Sudan through the attack on the Heglig area of oil in the Sudanese border which is internationally recognized, in violation of the international norms and laws and threatening for the security and peace. Hence, the International conspiracy appears against the Sudan and the application of double standards through the Security Council Resolution no. 2046 issued after the aggression of the State of Southern Sudan on the Sudanese lands in which the international community equated between the aggressor and the victim, and determined a period of three months to the two countries to resolve their disagreements and the Security Council will consider the possibility of imposing sanctions on both countries, consequently, in the light of American bias towards the southern Sudan, it is expected that these sanctions will be only on the Sudanese side completing the policy of pressure on the Sudanese regime, the matter which makes the Southern Sudan procrastinating to reach an agreement in the negotiations currently underway in Addis Ababa in order to push the disputes again into the Security Council. 
     The Sudanese government handled with this economic reality through several options, the first of which is searching for alternatives and substitute economic resources in various areas of agriculture and other exports along with increasing the production of oil discovered within its territories and encouraging the investment in general. But, due to the long negotiations between the Sudan and Southern Sudan, non-reliance of the Sudan on reaching a close settlement with the Southern Sudan because the Sudan did realized that the scheme is to bring about the economic collapse leading to the overthrow of regime, the Sudanese government and parliament allowed austerity measures to partially raise the support away from the fuel with a percentage of increase from 12.5% ??to 60% where the price of gasoline has raised from 8.5 Pound to 13.5 Pound per gallon (4 liters), the price of gasoline has raised from 7.5 Pound to 10 Pound per gallon and the gas from 16 Pound to 18 Pound. And increasing the taxes of banks profits from 15% to 30%, increasing the value-added tax from 15% to 17% in addition to reducing the governmental expenditure with percentage of 25%, contracting the State structures, shrinking the number of constitutionalists; ministers and advisers by dispensing with more than 360 constitutional jobs including 100 constitutionalists from the center and 260 from a federal loyalty level, the matter which provide a total of $ 1.5 billion to meet the decrease of budget imports. The economists reported that these actions serve the interest of macro-economic reform in terms of reducing the governmental expenditure, directs the support that was paid for the fuels to essential goods and medicines and social support in addition to mitigate smuggling which has become popular to some of neighboring countries of the Sudan including the State of Southern Sudan where smugglers take advantage of this feature to support these fuels and purchase them at prices lower than its real price even at the global one. Ali Mahmoud Abdel Rasoul, the minister of finance and national economy, announced a package of treatments and measures to avoid the effect that can be caused by economic measures representing in the rise of prices and some impact on the productive sectors. He explained that these treatments to mitigate the impact of the reforms manifesting in exempting drugs from customs duties, exempting the fodders and water pumps from the tax on added value, reducing the customs duties on food supplements from (40%) to (25%), reducing the customs duties on powder milk from (40%) to (25), reducing the customs duties on the crude oils from (10 %) to (3%), exempting the Ramadan goods from development tax and value-added tax until the end of August and increasing the salaries of the State employees and pensioners through paying a monthly grant reaches (100) pounds.

Gold

The continued support of two commodities of wheat and petroleum materials to meet the differences in the rate of exchange and increase the provision of social benefits by (100%) and funds approved by budget of 2012 in order to support number of (725) poor families according to what stated in the President's speech, support the treatment abroad; life-saving drugs and hospitalization; accidents and providing the treatment domestically; increase the strategic reserves of maize and made ??it available to the flagging groups at discounted prices; continue to exempt the commodities of wheat and sugar from duties and taxes, exempting the fodders and from its tax on the value-added and reduce the customs duty on truck tires from (25%) to (10%). The minister pointed out that the result of the reforms that have been made at the center of financial sector, budget of 2012 has been adjusted to achieve a positive growth rate in Gross Domestic Product "GDP" in range of 2%, the average of inflation rate in range of 25%, the rate of money supply to the limits of 12% and the budget deficit not to exceed 3.6% of GDP.
     In the area of revenue, total public revenues and foreign grants of the budget amended in 2012 is estimated by ($19,253) million pounds with a shortage percentage of (19%) of the allocation allowed for year 2012 despite the policies and procedures taken by the State to increase the proceeds of tax revenues and grants which led to an increase of (2.9 billion) pounds in order to make up for lost revenue of $ (7.3) billion Pounds.
     In the area of public expenditure, total expenditure of the budget amended for year 2012 was estimated with an amount of ($25,520) million pounds which is closer to the approval allowed for year of 2012 some of expenditure items have been reduced with an amount ($6.366) million pounds and increasing other items with an amount of ($3.726) million pounds, with a net decrease of Public expenditure of (2.640) million pounds from the budget that has been validated. The estimated remittances of the states governments to the budget amended for year 2012 with an amount of (6670.6) million pounds, of which  ($4196.5) million pounds for the current transfers similar to the estimates approved in budget of 2012 and ($2474.1) million pounds for the capital transfers by decrease percentage of (8%) of the funds allowed for year 2012. The national development of budget amended in 2012 was estimated with an amount of ($2512.4) million pounds of which (829.6) million pounds in local currency and an amount of (1687.8) million pounds in foreign currency with decrease percentage of (52%) of the funds authorized for year 2012. Total estimates made for the budget indicate that there is a complete shortage represents about (3.6%) of total GDP and it is financed from the external sources of finance (the signed loans and grants) as well as the internal sources of finance represented in the securities. 

Agriculture

Through the constitutional reduction that was made in the power at its various levels, the ruling party in the Sudan did not seek to obtain the power single-handedly, so it keep the level of participation of other political forces pursuant to what was done in the Declaration of the Broad-based Government where it vacated 258 positions from positions of its staff from total of 260 loyalty position and the same percentage or little bit lower on the central level.
     Procedures that have been done didn't satisfy some sectors, especially the students and particularly at the University of Khartoum that is congested with political problems related to the political conflict on the student tribune in the university where during the current academic year, the study was frozen for several times. And, after the announcement of these measures, some students came out in a limited demonstrations refusing these procedures in addition to some resistant political forces which seeks to exploit demonstrations of Khartoum against the government plans to reduce expenditure; recruiting the public disapproval of high prices to convert it to broader movement of protest but the demonstrations have failed to attract the street which knows that these political forces have predetermined attitudes against the existing regime even before the President Bashir completes one month in the reign. These attitudes opportunist to opposition are still repeated with each political or economic action made by the government. the Sudanese street, despite its suffering of living as a result of the current circumstances or what preceded it, is not excited to drift behind the claims of the opposition, especially after separation of the Southern Sudan and the emergence of the real intentions of movement against the Sudanese people and its appearance as a tool of foreign intervention to target the Sudan taking advantage of the support of some factions of this opposition, the matter which made the opposition an active and a key partner to enable the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Sudan to the separation of Southern Sudan where some of these reluctant forces are still part of the Popular Southern Movement to agree with them in the intellectual vision to change the identity of Sudan and forming the New Sudan through several mechanisms including the National Democratic Alliance, which after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, has turned into Juba gathering. It shall be deemed a political mechanism working on leading the street in parallel with the plan of economic collapse. The attempt of likening the limited protests during the previous days as a popular uprising like the Arab Spring, it is non-subjective assimilation, because the authority is now in the process of austerity by itself along with the officials form a continuing communication with the Sudanese street. The people remained a partner in political decision-making and even the protests that came out in which the citizens were not exposed to by harm, there have been no casualties so far and the role of police was restricted to maintain the public order and secure the critical facilities and properties.