The Ministry of Agriculture in South Darfur State, Kass region, Sudan, has revealed that the continuous fighting between the military forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), as well as the increased instability, have ruined the agricultural season in the area.

According to Mohammed Ahmed Adam Babiker, the head of Kas farmers, this year’s cultivation season and success rate are considered a failure due to insecurity in Kas, which has led to a reduction in markets selling crops, exposing farmers to significant losses.

“The agricultural season in Kas has failed due to several obstacles, including high agricultural input (fertilizer) prices for growing vegetables and fruits, expensive labor costs, lack of rain, livestock destruction of farms, but most especially, the insecurity caused by the ongoing war,” Babiker explained.

Mohammed Abakar, a farmer in Kas, said another issue they face is the damage to farmlands caused by pastorals driving animals to the farmlands as they escape war-affected areas.

He also stated that he planted 8 acres of crops earlier in the year, but animals damaged 5 of them during the harvesting process, despite the participation of security committees, which attempted to prevent herders from bringing their cattle to gardens.

Yaqoub Adam, a farmer from the Taura region, stated that the agricultural season has failed owing to rising seed and gasoline prices amid the military fights.

The Kas region is known for its enormous production of onions, millet, and okra, among other crops, and most Darfur cities rely on it for food, but all of this has come to a halt owing to the region’s continual security instability.