PORT SUDAN, Sudan, Jan 1, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Dozens of Sudanese demonstrated 
outside the seat of the army-backed government in Port Sudan on Tuesday to 
protest against its move to enact a partial currency swap.

The army-backed government had set a Monday deadline for residents of the six 
states under its control to swap old 500 and 1,000 Sudanese pound banknotes 
for new ones.

But as dozens protested outside government offices in the Red Sea port city 
on Tuesday, information minister Khalid al-Aiser announced that residents 
would have until January 6 to replace their old notes.

The value of the Sudanese pound has plummeted during 20 months of fighting 
between the regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, from 500 
to the dollar in April 2023 to 2,500 to the dollar now.

The war has killed tens of thousands of people, uprooted more than 12 million 
and left no sector of the economy unscathed.

The army-backed government says the partial currency swap aims to "protect 
the national economy and combat criminal operations" by counterfeiters.

But the arrival of Monday's deadline paralysed transport and trade in Port 
Sudan, the country's main export outlet.

Bus drivers, petrol stations and store owners refused to accept the old 
banknotes, while banks had only limited supplies of the new notes, AFP 
correspondents reported.

Many Sudanese accused the administration of placing an extra burden on the 
war-weary and increasingly impoverished population.

Critics have also warned that the move risks adding an economic dimension to 
the divide between areas under army control and those held by the RSF.

The RSF now controls nearly all the western region of Darfur and swathes of 
the centre and south, while the army holds the north and east.

Greater Khartoum is split between the warring sides.

The RSF has already banned the use of the new notes in areas under its 
control and accused the army of "a conspiracy to divide the country".