The Republic of Sudan is a country in northeast Africa. With a population of 45.70 million people (as of 2022) and an area of 1,886,068 square kilometres, it is the third largest country in Africa by area. Sudan has 210 million hectares of arable land, of which only 25% is used. According to the World Bank, agriculture generates 35-40% of GDP and employs 70-80% of the rural labour force.

Sudan is half desert, and much of the population suffers from a lack of clean drinking water as well as a reliable source of water for agriculture. With the Nile in the east of the country, parts of Sudan do have considerable water resources, but people in the west rely on wadis, seasonal wells, which often dry up.

Low soil and water productivity is one of the biggest challenges due to erratic climatic conditions, degraded soils, inadequate and poor technologies and lack of knowledge. Improving irrigation and agriculture, including crop production, livestock, fisheries and forestry, is therefore crucial for poverty reduction.