Sudan Democracy First Group
Sudan Transparency Initiative
Report Launch Press Release
Banking System in Sudan: Political Influence and Personal Interests Breed Corruption and Lack of Transparency.
4 December 2018
The Sudan Democracy First Group (SDFG), is pleased to announce the release of a new report on corruption and the political influences in Sudan’s banking system. The report is the latest publication of the Sudan Transparency Initiative series of reports, that focuses on exposing various aspects of corruption and lack of transparency in Sudan.
SDFG launched the Sudan Transparency Initiative (STI) project in March 2015 to investigate, analyze, document and disseminate credible and reliable information about the scope and scale of corruption and lack of transparency in Sudan. The overarching objective of the STI project is to raise awareness, promote accountability and spur grassroots anti-corruption movements in Sudan. One of the trackof the project is to conduct researches and produce reports on corruption and lack of transparency in specific key sectors.
The banking system sector in Sudan has received considerable attention and controversy both in government circles as well as the public arena. This report is an attempt to shed light on the intricate and multifaceted structure and practices of this sector.
The report is an attempt to give an overview of the banking system history, legal framework and governing authorities, political influence and personal interests that negatively impact the operation of banks and examples of corrupt practices and lack of transparency that dominate the sector.
The report concludes by laying out a broad set of challenges that currently facing Sudan’s banking system, such as ineffective policies issued by the Central Bank of Sudan (CBOS); spread of corruption; US Sanctions; access to external financing from international financial institutions (IFIs); liquidity squeezes by the CBOS, and lack of corporate governance.
The report also provides a number of recommendations to tackle these challenges, such as promoting the public’s confidence in the banking system and ensuring its stability; anti-corruption mitigating strategies; improving correspondence banks relationships; promoting good market practices and ensuring high standards of corporate governance and regulatory frameworks to prevent corruption and ensure a sound, healthy and resilient banking system in Sudan in the near future.
To read the full report, please click here.