Former Sudanese minister of finance, Dr Sayed Ali Zaki Khartoum - Abed Algayom Ashmeag Former Sudanese minister of finance, Dr Sayed Ali Zaki, speaking to Arabstoday said that his country\'s economy was facing an unprecedented challenge, due to the loss of oil revenues following the annexation from the South and that many policies undertaken by the government were wrong. Dr Sayed Ali Zaki, who was the first minister of finance under President Bashir added: \"The decision to lift subsidies on fuel by the Sudanese government is an inevitable option,\" describing the decision as\" primarily economic\" Zaki  urged for economists to advise the government on how to apply this decision with the least damage and loss. He urged the government to first tighten its belt and follow a  policy of rationalisation and austerity before making demands on Sudan\'s citizens to do the same, explaining that citizens should be set an example by their leaders, adding  that many of the policies undertaken by the government were wrong. \"For example, the government, abandoned  well-established production areas in favour of others which were uncharted and didn\'t have the same levels of productivity,  describing it as a \"risky investment without planning.\"  He believed that the negligence in investment in  agriculture has contributed towards the current economic hardship, pointing out that more than half of the population in Sudan depends on agriculture, pasture and livestock production.. He continued: \"The agricultural sector was affected by the war with the south,  leading to the migration of citizens from the countryside to cities because of  a lack of basic needs..\" The former finance minister believed that the government of President Bashir succeeded in its early years despite the economic blockade and restrictions,  to eliminate the queues of people lining up for bread and fuel by applying an economic liberalisation policy, but this in turn sowed the seeds for Sudan\'s current financial problems.  for