The amount will cover basic food needs for three months and 280,000 tonnes have already been supplied DUBAI: Saudi Arabia and the UAE have sent 540,000 tons of wheat to Sudan to cover the basic food needs of its people for three months. The shipment forms part of a $3 billion Saudi-UAE joint aid package, announced in April this year, to support the North African country’s economic and financial stability. Mohammed Saif Al-Suwaidi, director general of the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), said: “The food security support provided to the Sudanese people is in line with the wise directives of the leaderships of the UAE and Saudi Arabia to ensure the provision of essential food supplies and mitigate the effects of the current transitional stage in the country. “Both countries are keen to provide all possible support to Sudan in overcoming difficult conditions and achieving economic stability and food security. The aid package stems from the brotherly ties that unite the UAE and Saudi Arabia with the Sudanese people.” As part of the $3 billion relief program, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have deposited $500 million in the Central Bank of Sudan, evenly split between the two countries, to strengthen its financial position. The remainder of the aid package will be allocated to meet the urgent needs of the Sudanese people for food, medicine, petroleum derivatives, and seasonal agricultural requirements. Separately, in Port Sudan, Saudi Ambassador to Sudan Ali bin Hassan Jafar handed over a shipment of more than 50,000 tons of agricultural nutrients and other farming products in the presence of Red Sea Province Gov. Maj. Gen. Essam Abdul-Faraj. Following the ceremony in the eastern Sudan port city, the Kingdom’s envoy said that the aid was aimed at easing current pressures on Sudanese farmers. On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia deposited $250 million into the Central Bank of Sudan to help alleviate pressure on the Sudanese pound and stabilize the country’s exchange rate, the Saudi Ministry of Finance said.