(Ecofin Agency) - Central Bank of Sudan received $1.4 billion from the United Arab Emirates as deposit, the official Sudanese news agency SUNA reported, indicating that the amount will help consolidate the country's foreign exchange reserves.

The deposit was provided to the Sudanese market regulator by the Abu Dhabi Development Fund, the source added.

Sudan's foreign exchange reserves have significantly dropped in the recent months, negatively impacting imports and limiting dollar trading on the parallel market.

In recent months, the Central Bank has been trying to steer the money flow into the formal banking system through two sharp devaluations of the local currency (Sudanese pound) since January. The first time its value dropped from 6.7 to 18.7 SDG per dollar in January, then declined to 31.5 per dollar in February. These devaluations helped reverse the currency’s collapse.

Let’s recall that Sudan's economy has been struggling since the secession in 2011. Indeed, because of this separation from the south, Khartoum lost 75% of oil production, a third of its territory and a quarter of its population.