{"id":57027,"date":"2025-11-11T00:52:52","date_gmt":"2025-11-10T21:52:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/?p=57027"},"modified":"2025-11-11T00:52:52","modified_gmt":"2025-11-10T21:52:52","slug":"a-return-to-reason-the-central-bank-of-sudan-regains-its-economic-consciousness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/2025\/11\/11\/a-return-to-reason-the-central-bank-of-sudan-regains-its-economic-consciousness\/","title":{"rendered":"A Return to Reason: The Central Bank of Sudan Regains Its Economic Consciousness"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Muhannad Awad Mahmoud<\/strong><\/p>\n

Since the appointment of Dr. Amina Mirghani Hassan El-Toum as Governor of the Central Bank of Sudan on October 13, it is no exaggeration to say that the country\u2019s most important monetary institution has regained its senses after years of turmoil and confusion. Praise be to God, who has lifted the affliction and restored balance to Sudan\u2019s economic mind. The change at the top was far more than a routine administrative move; it was a deeply symbolic event. Amina became the first woman in Sudan\u2019s history to assume this position, opening a wide door for Sudanese women to demonstrate their competence and leadership capacity in the most delicate and complex of circumstances. This stage demands not just a traditional banker, but a crisis manager and wartime economist \u2014 someone who understands the fine balance between monetary policy and the necessities of economic survival amid the storms of conflict.<\/p>\n

Since assuming office, the new governor has taken deliberate, calculated steps reflecting institutional awareness and a clear grasp of the crisis at hand. Her first move was to meet with commercial banks and commend them for their resilience in maintaining the banking system under extraordinary conditions, reaffirming the Central Bank\u2019s commitment to supporting these institutions that form the backbone of the national economy. The meeting rebuilt bridges of trust between the Central Bank and the banking sector after years of stagnation, sending a reassuring message to depositors and investors that the financial system remains grounded in professional stability.<\/p>\n

On November 5, under her leadership, the Central Bank made one of its most significant decisions amid the country\u2019s ongoing crisis: it revoked a directive issued roughly two months earlier that had restricted gold exports exclusively to the Central Bank. The new policy reinstated the private sector\u2019s right to directly engage in gold exports. With this decision, one of the most stifling constraints on the market was lifted \u2014 a burden that had exhausted producers and exporters alike. Sudanese gold was thus released from the grip of temporary monopoly and set free into the realm of open competition. While the earlier directive had revived bureaucratic inefficiency in its worst form, its cancellation restored a crucial balance between the state\u2019s role as a regulator and the private sector\u2019s role as the principal driver of the national economy.<\/p>\n

Allowing private companies to export gold brings flexibility, speed, and the ability to access new markets and establish global client networks. The private sector also has greater capacity to manage financial transactions through safe and transparent channels. Moreover, the Central Bank\u2019s decision to permit payments through letters of credit, requiring export proceeds to be repatriated within one month, was a smart move to stimulate trade, broaden the export base, diversify markets, enhance transparency, and ensure that revenues flow through official banking channels. This will strengthen foreign currency reserves and limit the influence of the parallel market.<\/p>\n

Ending the gold export monopoly is, in essence, a reformist step. It transforms the Central Bank from an operational entity into a regulatory and supervisory body, allowing it to focus on monetary policy rather than commercial transactions. The private sector, by nature, is faster and more competitive in responding to international markets, whereas government bureaucracy, with its delays and complications, has long been an obstacle to Sudan\u2019s economic potential and export growth.<\/p>\n

As part of its monetary reform efforts, the Central Bank also announced plans to replace existing banknotes and issue new denominations of 2,000 and 500 Sudanese pounds \u2014 a bold and necessary move to curb the circulation of counterfeit currency, reduce the cash supply outside the formal banking system, and restore confidence in the national currency. From an economic standpoint, this measure helps control liquidity, contain inflation, and encourage citizens to transact through banks, thereby deepening financial inclusion and reestablishing monetary discipline.<\/p>\n

Amid these reforms, it has become evident that the Central Bank is reclaiming its proper role as a maker of monetary policy rather than a mere executor of ad hoc directives. The current trajectory reflects a rationalization of economic decision-making, aligning it with international standards rather than political whims. This shift marks a new path for Sudan in managing its resources, especially if followed by further measured engagement with the banking and private sectors.<\/p>\n

In the short term, allowing private gold exports is expected to increase foreign currency inflows and narrow the gap between official and parallel exchange rates. The formalization of export revenues will boost liquidity within banks, enhancing their lending capacity, while the currency replacement will help stabilize domestic markets and curb speculation. In the long term, these measures lay the foundation for transforming gold exports from a source of smuggling and disorder into a genuine engine of development, paving the way for economic diversification and the building of a competitive export base in regional and global markets.<\/p>\n

However, reform will remain incomplete unless the Central Bank urgently opens dialogue with commercial banks regarding unremitted export proceeds. The rate set in the Bank\u2019s latest directive is considered unfair to exporters, and it is unrealistic to expect full compliance if conversion rates are unprofitable. Therefore, the pricing mechanism must be revised to ensure fairness, incentivize exporters, and encourage official repatriation of proceeds.<\/p>\n

What Dr. Amina Mirghani is undertaking is not merely the management of a central bank in wartime, but a reconstruction of lost trust between the state and the economic sector \u2014 a courageous attempt to transform the financial system from an administrative burden into a driver of production and development. The past few weeks have proven that Sudanese women possess the courage and wisdom to handle the nation\u2019s toughest challenges, and that genuine reform begins with the state\u2019s monetary mind \u2014 with a central bank that knows when to intervene and when to let the market operate by its natural intelligence.<\/p>\n

Indeed, the Central Bank of Sudan appears to be returning to reason. What we are witnessing today is not a random sequence of policy decisions, but the beginning of a genuine reform path that deserves support and follow-up, for the stability of the Sudanese pound and the restoration of confidence in the banking system are the cornerstones of any future economic recovery.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Muhannad Awad Mahmoud Since the appointment of Dr. Amina Mirghani Hassan El-Toum as Governor of the Central Bank of Sudan on October 13, it is no exaggeration to say that the country\u2019s most important monetary institution has regained its senses after years of turmoil and confusion. Praise be to God, who has lifted the …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50485,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-57027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57027","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57027"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57027\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57028,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57027\/revisions\/57028"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57027"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57027"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57027"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}