Sudan: Tobacco Farmers Ask Khartoum for Alternative Livelihood

Source from:  Raido Dabanga (Hilversum) 10/08/2012

Tobacco farmers from El-Fasher, North Darfur, asked the Islamic Fiqh Academy to find them an alternative livelihood since it prohibited the sales of tobacco. Speaking on Wednesday, 26 September to Radio Dabanga, farmers said that 4 million people in Darfur are dependent on the cultivation and sales of tobacco leaves. The farmers stressed that they sell their product in Khartoum and other states, and that the prohibition may have negative political, economic and social implications for citizens throughout Darfur. Sons of El- Fasher pointed out they inherited the cultivation of tobacco from their ancestors. They claimed to have been doing it since 1850, when it was introduced in Sudan by Hussein Wed Amari, from Timbuktu Islamic State of Mali. Farmers called upon Khartoum to responsibly and seriously consider their legitimate demands by finding them an alternative source of livelihood. Enditem