Sudan’s Economies of Survival

In wartime Sudan, civilians have built alternative financial networks to keep money circulating despite a broken banking system, enabling people to pay for food, healthcare and other necessities.

Written by Eglal Hamid

Aug 16, 2026

Tariq Abuzeid, 52, who lost his leg in a shelling attack, sits with his granddaughter in the family living room in Omdurman, on the outskirts of Khartoum, Sudan, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

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One afternoon in Juba, a young Sudanese woman walked into Bakri’s supermarket in one of the city’s affluent neighbourhoods. She had come to collect money her family had sent from Sudan. The transfer had already arrived. The problem was that her phone had been stolen. Without the phone, she could not show the transfer notification that serves as proof that money has reached the recipient. Without proof, there was no transaction. And without the money, she could not pay her university fees. The student, who had fled Sudan after war disrupted her medical studies in Darfur, began to cry. ‘I don’t even remember my family’s phone numbers,’ she recalled telling Bakri.

In most financial systems, that would have been the end of the conversation. No notification, no withdrawal. But Bakri made a different calculation. He handed her the cash anyway. Then he walked her to a nearby shop owned by a relative and guaranteed a new phone on her behalf so she could contact her family through Facebook and retrieve the transfer details later. ‘Pay your fees first,’ he told her. ‘We will sort out the rest afterwards.’ Months later, the university student became his fiancée.

This story may sound unusual, but for many Sudanese living through war and displacement, it is no longer exceptional. Across Sudan and neighbouring countries, millions of dollars now move through networks that operate beyond conventional banking systems. These networks rely less on formal contracts than on reputation, community ties and accumulated trust. Hence, when Sudan’s war shattered much of the country’s financial infrastructure, money did not stop moving. Instead, Sudanese civilians built new ways to keep it moving.

WHEN WAR BROKE THE BANKING SYSTEM

The war that broke out in Sudan in April 2023 has been described as a struggle between two military institutions: the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). But for millions of civilians, it quickly became something else entirely: a disruption of everyday life at every level. The conflict grew out of tensions that had been building since the removal of longtime president Omar al-Bashir in 2019. The transitional period that followed was fragile from the start, marked by deep disagreements over the future structure of the state and the balance of power within it. As disputes intensified over security sector reform and the integration of armed forces, the political arrangement collapsed into open warfare on 15 April 2023.

What began as fighting over military positions in Khartoum soon spread across large parts of the country. Control shifted repeatedly across regions, with violence extending into Darfur, Kordofan, Gezira and beyond. Entire cities became battlegrounds. Roads turned uncertain. Communication networks failed. Electricity and public services deteriorated. Millions of people were forced to flee within Sudan or across borders into Egypt, South Sudan, Uganda and Chad. By the second year of the war, Sudan had become the scene of one of the world’s largest displacement crises. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), by 2025, nearly 14 million people had been displaced by the conflict. However, destruction was not limited to homes and physical infrastructure. The institutions that structure everyday life also came under severe strain. Banks were among the most affected. Many branches closed or operated irregularly. Staff fled from conflict zones. Repeated power outages and telecommunications breakdowns made financial transactions unreliable or impossible across large parts of the country. Banking infrastructure also suffered extensive damage. By late 2024, Sudanese banking experts estimated that roughly 70 per cent of bank branches were no longer operating as fighting spread through major urban centres...

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About the Author

Eglal Hamid

is a Sudanese writer and policy commentator focusing on conflict, displacement, civilian survival and the politics of recognition in African contexts. Her work has appeared in African Arguments, Democracy in Africa, Justice Info and Pambazuka News.

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Sudan’s Economies of Survival

WHEN WAR BROKE THE BANKING SYSTEM