![Darfur rebel group leader Gibril Ibrahim and Suandan Finance Minister [sreengrab/Youtube]](https://i0.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Gibril-Ibrahim.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1)
Sudan is in talks with the United Arab Emirates on a project to build a port along the country’s Red Sea coast, the Sudanese finance minister announced yesterday.
Gibril Ibrahim told reporters in the United States that his government had signed an agreement with the UAE to build the port. His remarks came on the fringes of the International Monetary Fund meetings in Washington DC.
The minister did not mention any details about the total investment value of the project. However, Reuters reported in June that the estimated cost was $4 billion.
Experts say that the Sudanese economy would benefit from such a large-scale project, especially after last year’s military coup that toppled civilian members of the power-sharing government. The move prompted Western donors to suspend aid and plunged the country into a severe financial crisis.