{"id":20121235,"date":"2025-10-02T21:13:53","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T19:13:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/?p=20121235"},"modified":"2025-10-02T21:18:24","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T19:18:24","slug":"sudan-pm-unveils-100bn-saudi-investment-plan-and-gerd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/en\/all-news\/article\/sudan-pm-unveils-100bn-saudi-investment-plan-and-gerd-review","title":{"rendered":"Sudan PM unveils $100bn Saudi investment plan and GERD review"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sudan\u2019s Prime Minister Kamil El Tayeb Idris has announced a $100 billion package of investment projects proposed to Saudi Arabia and a fresh review of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) with Ethiopia and Egypt.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking at a press conference in Port Sudan on Wednesday after returning from the\u00a0UN General Assembly<\/a> in New York, Idris said he presented 100 joint projects to Riyadh focused on the Red Sea\u2019s untapped resources, which he argued could make Sudan and Saudi Arabia \u201camong the richest countries in the world\u201d if developed in partnership.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also pledged a comprehensive reassessment of Sudan\u2019s approach to the Nile dam dispute, emphasising direct diplomacy with both Cairo and Addis Ababa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Prime Minister added that\u00a0recent floods in Sudan<\/a>, which angered many Sudanese people, were widely believed to have resulted from the dam\u2019s gates being opened. However, the Ministry of Agriculture attributed the flooding to heavy rains linked to climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

El Fasher siege<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Idris said his top priorities in New York were lifting the siege on North Darfur\u2019s capital\u00a0of El Fasher<\/a>\u00a0and pressing for the pramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to be designated a terrorist group. He emphasised Sudan\u2019s sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity, adding that the international community responded positively to Khartoum\u2019s position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Prime Minister revealed that UN Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres accepted his invitation to visit Sudan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

African Union return<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Idris also declared that\u00a0Sudan\u2019s readmission to the African Union<\/a>\u00a0(AU) is \u201ca matter of time\u201d. He underlined the AU\u2019s role as Sudan\u2019s \u201creal support\u201d, noting that every country he met backed Sudan\u2019s reintegration. The AU suspended Sudan\u2019s membership following the October 2021 military coup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

US sanctions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Idris condemned the\u00a0US State Department sanctions<\/a>\u00a0on Sudan as \u201cunjust\u201d and revealed they are currently under review following his meetings with American officials.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington imposed sanctions on Sudan over\u00a0alleged use of chemical weapons<\/a>, while also targeting\u00a0commander-in-chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces, Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan\u00a0and\u00a0RSF Commander Mohamed \u2018Hemedti\u2019 Dagalo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Prime Minister reiterated that decisions on humanitarian aid corridors remain a sovereign and security matter, stressing that state institutions must be involved to safeguard Sudan\u2019s sovereignty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018No famine in Sudan\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Idris dismissed reports of famine in Sudan as \u201cfalse\u201d, insisting that international organisations and some media outlets are misrepresenting the situation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking at the weekly Ministry of Culture and Information platform in Port Sudan, he acknowledged severe hardship in besieged areas such as El Fasher but argued this does not amount to famine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe situation in Sudan cannot be described as famine,\u201d Idris said. \u201cThere are areas under siege that require urgent international action to lift blockades, but Sudan has passed the stage of famine permanently. We will not allow anyone to revive this claim, and we have confronted these allegations firmly with evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His statement comes as numerous aid organisations, along with the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC),\u00a0declared famine<\/a>\u00a0in five areas of North Darfur and Kordofan last December. Since then, Radio Dabanga has reported widespread malnutrition, with people resorting to\u00a0eating ambaz<\/a>\u00a0(animal feed) to stave off hunger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In January, the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs\u00a0rejected the findings<\/a>\u00a0of the IPC report, claiming that they \u201cdo not reflect an objective and accurate description of the reality of food security in Sudan\u201d, \u201cignore reliable scientific indicators\u201d and \u201cfail to follow agreements reached with Sudanese experts\u201d, adding that the data used is outdated \u201cas no field surveys have been conducted since 2022\u201d.<\/p>\n