KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Sudan has received half of the $ 3 billion in aid pledged by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in April and the rest is expected to be paid by the end of next year, Sudan's finance minister said on Sunday.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE have deposited $ 500 million in Sudan's central bank, Badawi said late on Monday. One billion dollars worth of petroleum products, wheat and agricultural inputs have been received.
The donation came after Riyadh and Abu Dhabi agreed to provide the aid package shortly after the ouster of former President Omar al-Bashir, a lifeline to Sudan's new leadership.
Al-Badawi said he met with the ambassadors of the Kingdom and the UAE and agreed on a program schedule until the end of 2020, so that the rest of the grant would be awarded. He spoke on the sidelines of an event in Abu Dhabi, where Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdouk is visiting the country following a visit to Riyadh earlier this week.
Rescue plan
It was noteworthy that he was accompanied by Hamdouk in his visit to the Gulf Abdul Fattah Burhan, Chairman of the Transitional Council of sovereignty and senior officials.
Last month, al-Badawi announced a nine-month economic bailout aimed at curbing inflation while securing supplies of basic goods, which will keep subsidizing bread and fuel until at least June.
Earlier yesterday, Hamdouk called on Saudi businessmen to increase investment in his country, during a meeting with a group of Saudi businessmen at the headquarters of the Council of Saudi Chambers, in the presence of ministers from both countries, on the sidelines of a visit to the country began on Sunday, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
The Sudanese Prime Minister that his country is rich in resources and "we look forward to joint cooperation in the fields of agriculture, industry, services, infrastructure and energy," praising the strategic relations linking Khartoum and Riyadh.