Darfur's long-distance trade: impact of war and Rapid Support Forces' trade embargo

An overview of the effect of the war and the subsequent embargo imposed by the Rapid Support Forces on regular trade into and out of areas it controls.

Abstract

This brief provides an overview of the effect of the war and the subsequent embargo imposed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on regular trade into and out of areas it controls, focusing particularly on Darfur. The embargo obstructs the trade and export of locally produced commodities in areas under RSF control (mostly in western Sudan) to other destinations in Sudan and effectively outside the country. It complements the SPARC brief ‘The impact of war on trade and markets in Darfur: Destruction, resilience and adaptation’.

This work is part of the Supporting Pastoralism and Agriculture in Recurrent and Protracted Crises  (SPARC) programme.

Darfur’s long-distance trade: impact of war and Rapid Support Forces’ trade embargo

Updates to this page

Published 27 February 2026