Sudan economy: GDP, investment, trade and remittances
How large the Sudan economy is and how fast it is growing, who invests in it, what it sells and buys, how much its citizens abroad send home, who it owes and what it holds in reserve. The latest published year is shown with each figure.
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Sudan economy snapshot: GDP, growth and income per person
Sudan's GDP was US$60.2 billion in 2025, after real growth of 3.1%.
GDP
Current US dollars.
Real GDP growth
Annual change, per cent. Red bars are contractions.
GDP per person
Current US dollars.
Source: World Bank, 2025. Method
Who invests in Sudan and in what
Direct investment by investing country
China was the largest investing country in Sudan, at 140% of inward direct investment positions in 2024.
Inward direct investment positions in Sudan at the end of 2024: the stock of foreign direct investment, not a year's new flow. The 10 largest investing countries.
The IMF data holds no positions reported by Sudan itself. The figures are derived by the IMF from what the investing countries report, so they are shown as reported by investing countries.
Source: IMF, 2024. Method
What Sudan sells and buys
Sudan has not reported recent trade data to UN Comtrade. These figures are what 129 trading partners report about trade with Sudan, shown as reported by trading partners. Partners' imports from Sudan stand in for its exports and partners' exports to Sudan for its imports. They are not Sudan's own figures.
Oil seeds and grains was 24% of exports in 2023.
Sudan sold the most to United Arab Emirates, 22% of exports in 2023.
Exports by product, 2023
Tile area follows value. Each tile is a customs chapter of the Harmonized System; hover for the full name.
Source: UN Comtrade, 2023. Method
Top buyers, 2023
Share of Sudan's exports.
Top suppliers, 2023
Share of Sudan's imports.
Source: UN Comtrade, 2023. Method
What Sudan buys, 2023
The 8 largest product chapters in imports.
Source: UN Comtrade, 2023. Method
Trade balance of goods
Exports minus imports. Red bars are years when imports were larger. A year is left out when either side is not published.
Source: UN Comtrade, 2023. Method
Remittances against foreign direct investment in Sudan
Remittances to Sudan were 6285.2 times foreign direct investment in 2025.
Source: World Bank, 2026. Method
Remittances and investment as a share of GDP
The same two flows measured against the size of the economy.
Source: World Bank, 2026. Method
Who Sudan owes
External debt stock by type of creditor. Creditor types cover public and publicly guaranteed debt; the grey part is the rest of the total external debt stock. A creditor type with no published figure is not shown.
Bilateral creditors held 36% of Sudan's external debt stock in 2024.
Public external debt owed to China was US$921 million in 2024, 4% of the external debt stock.
Source: World Bank, 2026. Method
Reserves and months of import cover
Total reserves including gold, and how many months of imports they cover.
Source: World Bank, 2026. Method
Aid received by Sudan
Net official development assistance and official aid received.
Source: World Bank, 2026. Method
Where Sudan ranks in Africa
Its place among the 54 African countries on each of our Africa rankings. Each tile opens the full ranking with its source.
- GDP per person48th of 53$724, 2025Richest countries in Africa
- Size of the economy20th of 53$36.5 billion, 2025Largest economies in Africa
- Population8th of 5350.4 million, 2025African countries by population
- Area3rd of 541,878,000 sq kmLargest countries in Africa
- Life expectancy23rd of 5466.5 years, 2024Life expectancy in Africa
- US travel advisory54th of 54Level 4, do not travelSafest countries in Africa
- President's time in office31st longest of 51Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, 4 yearsLongest serving presidents
- President's age22nd youngest of 5166 years oldYoungest presidents in Africa
More on Sudan
- Sudan government directory
- Inflation and unemployment in Sudan
- Sudan debt: debt to GDP and largest creditors
- Who invests in Africa: the largest foreign investors in every country
- Natural resources in Sudan: oil, gas and minerals
- North Africa: Sudan and its neighbours compared
- African economies compared: GDP, investment, trade and remittances
World Bank data pages for Sudan: GDP, GDP growth, GDP per person, remittances, foreign direct investment, reserves, months of imports, external debt, debt by creditor, aid. UN Comtrade: trade data. IMF: direct investment positions.
Cite this
PollsAfrica (2026). Sudan economy: GDP, investment, trade and remittances. Retrieved 10 Oct 2026 from https://pollsafrica.com/economy/sudan