Sudan Targets Wheat Self-Sufficiency, Plans Crop Diversification

Sudan has targeted self-sufficiency in wheat production in five years’ time and also plans to expand output of other grain crops, Agriculture Minister Abdel Haleem al-Mutafi said.

Sudan, Africa’s biggest country, imports 80 percent of its annual wheat needs and the country aims to attract investment from the Persian Gulf and China to boost production to its annual usage, al-Mutafi said. The country will consume 2 million metric tons in 2010-2011, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data.