Full Analysis Summary
Gum arabic trade disruption
RSF advances into western states and takeover of key producing areas have effectively paralysed Sudan’s historic gum arabic trade centred on El Obeid, blocking movement of stockpiles, collapsing contracts and preventing large export deals from being met.
Pre-war annual exports are placed at roughly 100,000–150,000 tonnes, but the conflict and RSF control have cut flows sharply and forced buyers and exporters to exit the market, leaving the sector unable to fulfil typical 50,000–100,000-tonne contracts.
Traders and producers report that routes to army-held markets are blocked by RSF checkpoints and the broader fighting has halted normal harvest and trade operations across the gum belt.
Coverage Differences
Unique Coverage
allAfrica (African) focuses on the direct mechanics and metrics of market paralysis — noting RSF takeovers, checkpoints and concrete export figures such as a fall to roughly 48,000 tonnes in 2023–24 — while Dabanga Radio TV Online (Other) frames the crisis more by sectoral impacts and longer background context (supply ranges, product uses, and broader economic vulnerabilities). allAfrica reports on looting and specific price examples; Dabanga highlights supply shortages, lower‑quality grades failing to find buyers, and calls from activists for pricing transparency.
Tone
allAfrica (African) uses specific loss figures and examples of looting to underline immediate market breakdown; Dabanga (Other) emphasizes livelihoods, smuggling and calls for international recognition of the sector crisis as both an economic and rights issue.
Market shock and examples
The market shock shows up in collapsing prices and vanished demand: reported examples range from sharp producer-to-market disparities to a general exit by major buyers and exporters.
allAfrica gives concrete market examples, such as a quintal of hashab falling in El Obeid, talha fetching minimal sums in production zones compared with much higher export prices, and buyers exiting.
Dabanga points to volatile global demand, the failure of lower-quality grades to find buyers, and the impossibility of meeting large export contracts under current conditions.
Coverage Differences
Details
allAfrica (African) provides granular price examples and a detailed account of export declines and looting; Dabanga (Other) contributes sectoral context such as grade quality issues, global demand volatility and the broader employment impacts, but does not list the same price examples. allAfrica reports on specific SDG price movements; Dabanga stresses market confidence and supply route restoration as prerequisites for recovery.
Narrative Framing
Dabanga (Other) frames the issue as both an economic and social-rights problem — highlighting calls for pricing transparency and protections — whereas allAfrica (African) foregrounds immediate market mechanisms (checkpoints, theft, and price collapses) to explain how the trade has been disrupted.
Human and economic impacts
The human and economic consequences are severe: thousands of jobs across collection, transport, storage, marketing and export have been lost, harvests were halted, and many producers have been pushed into displacement and risky livelihoods such as informal gold mining and cutting acacia trees for charcoal.
allAfrica documents specific instances of looting, noting an RSF attack on En Nahud reportedly seized more than 1,000 tonnes.
Dabanga stresses how the downturn increased social vulnerability, displacement and smuggling, amplifying food‑security and income risks in rural communities.
Coverage Differences
Emphasis
Dabanga (Other) emphasises social vulnerability and livelihoods across the value chain and highlights activist calls for rights and protections; allAfrica (African) emphasises concrete incidents like looting and exact figures to illustrate capital losses and immediate impacts on firms and contracts.
Harvest crisis responses
Responses are uneven: activists and producers call for stronger protections, pricing transparency and international recognition of the crisis as both an economic and rights issue.
Regional authorities such as Blue Nile have signalled production plans, launching the new harvest in Khor Dunia with a pledge of about 11,000 tonnes and reforestation and seed projects.
Both sources warn recovery depends on improved security, restored routes and market confidence.
Attempts to reroute exports via neighbouring countries have so far been costly and constrained by weak demand.
Traders caution the sector will struggle without those changes.
Coverage Differences
Unique Coverage
Dabanga (Other) reports Blue Nile regional authorities launching a harvest in Khor Dunia and pledging about 11,000 tonnes and reforestation work — a local government response framing recovery through production and ecological measures — while allAfrica (African) focuses on calls to secure production areas, reopen trade routes and the practical failure of rerouting exports due to cost and limited demand.
Tone
allAfrica (African) stresses pragmatic recovery steps (securing areas, reopening routes) and the limitations of rerouting via neighboring countries; Dabanga (Other) pairs calls for protections with local production pledges and ecological initiatives, giving a slightly more programme‑oriented local governance angle.