Sudan famine rots harvests in fertile Jebel Marra region

Sudan’s Jebel Marra region, rich in fertile land and fruits, faces famine as war and blocked roads leave crops rotting amid hunger and displacement.

A Land of Plenty Surrounded by Starvation

In the heart of Sudan’s Darfur region lies Jebel Marra, a stunning mountain range filled with green hills and fertile soil. Farmers grow oranges, peanuts, apples, and strawberries — rare crops in a nation struggling with severe hunger. Yet, despite the abundance, much of the food is rotting in fields and markets due to war and isolation.

Before the conflict, Jebel Marra’s organic oranges were famous across Sudan for their flavor and juiciness. Today, those same fruits lie unsold, a symbol of a broken supply chain.

War Turns Prosperity into Wasteland

The ongoing civil war, now in its third year, has severely disrupted Sudan’s agriculture and food supply. According to the UN, about 25 million people — nearly half the country’s population — face food shortages, with more than 600,000 experiencing famine.

In Jebel Marra, food grows in abundance — but getting it to the markets has become nearly impossible. Roads are damaged, transportation is unsafe, and checkpoints slow down every movement of goods. Vendors often sell their produce at extremely low prices or abandon it when it spoils on the journey.

Isolation Behind the Mountains

Jebel Marra is under the control of the Sudan Liberation Army–Abdulwahid (SLA-AW), a group that has stayed neutral in the current war. Surrounded by opposing forces — the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese army — the region has become a cut-off pocket of relative calm amid chaos.

Access to nearby cities like El-Fasher and Tine is nearly impossible. Treacherous mountain paths, insecurity, and dozens of armed checkpoints make travel both slow and dangerous. Even a short 12 km trip can take an entire day.

Fragile Markets and Risky Trade

In towns like Nertiti and Tawila, markets open only once a week. Farmers trade fruits and vegetables, while Arab women sell milk and other goods. However, the arrangement remains unstable — a single violent clash can shut the market down for weeks.

Because movement is so restricted, an oversupply of food in some areas contrasts sharply with starvation elsewhere. This tragic imbalance shows how conflict destroys even the most fertile regions.

Humanity Amid Hardship

Thousands of displaced families from El-Fasher and other cities have fled to Jebel Marra. Many are living in schools and clinics without proper food or aid. Locals share what they can, but their resources are running out fast.

A vendor in Golo expressed the collective despair:

“We are not part of the war — we just want to sell our oranges.”