Sudan, a country that borders Egypt in Northeast Africa has decided to send crop samples to the “Doomsday” vault in a remote Norwegian island in the Arctic. These genetic samples are of seeds of food crops. But why does Sudan do this?
The Svalbard Global Seed Vault, often referred to as the “Doomsday” safe is deep in a mountain where artificial caves are carved. Here food crop seeds from all over the world are stored and their genetic codes are stored for potential apocalypse.
This safe is designed to withstand a wide range of disasters, both of course and by humans – from floods, snowstorms and volcanoes to global warming, war and nuclear disasters. It was launched in the year 2008 and has since served as the Genenbank of the Planet. This also includes the genetic codes of thousands of crops and plant species.
The Svalbard Global Seed Vault, known as the “Doomsday” Kluis, is located in the remote Arctic.
The serious situation in Sudan
Although an apocalyptic event has not yet taken place, the world has seen conflict or war in some part – also in Sudan.
Unlike the war in Gaza or the one in Ukraine, the civil war in Sudan is not so prominently spoken, but the country is in a serious situation. The unrest had broken out in April 2023, when the Sudanese army and the rapid main force of the country – bumped into a paramilitary faction.
Until now, tens of thousands of lives have been lost in the war in Sudan. According to a report from the BBCIt is estimated that by May 2024 the number of deaths in the Last Civil War of Sudan had crossed 150,000 – even more than that of the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
In the capital of Sudan Khartoem alone, it is estimated that more than 61,000 people died until October 2024. Hundreds of thousands were injured and more than 12 million people have been displaced and homeless.
More than half of the Sudan’s population – around 50 million – has been deposited into hunger and serious malnutrition. Various locations in the war -destroyed nation will be made with famine.
Not only people, but plants and animals also wear the victims, and retaining the genetic codes of crops that are locally to the region, have become a necessity. “In Sudan … these seeds represent hope,” said the director of Sudan’s agricultural plant Genetic Resources Conservation and Research Center in a statement.
Sudan pours samples of 15 species of crops, consisting of different types of Sorghum – a plant that is important for both the food security of the country and the cultural heritage.
In addition to Sudan, crash samples from various other countries are also dropped off with a view to conservation. These include seeds of northern tree species from Sweden and rice from Thailand.
A total of 14,022 new samples were deposited.
Protected by permafrost, the “Doomsday” vault has received monsters from all over the world since its founding. It played a leading role between 2015 and 2019 in the resuming of seed collections that were damaged during the war in Syria. “The seeds deposited this week represent not only biodiversity, but also the knowledge, culture and resilience of the communities that rose,” said performing director Stefan Schmitz of the Crop Trust in a statement.
(Inputs from Reuters)