KHARTOUM, (Xinhua) -- Labor strikes paralyzed vital sectors in Sudan , protesting the deterioration of salaries and the worsening economic conditions in the country.

Thousands of workers and students in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, were forced today (Sunday) to go and return from their places of work and study on foot after the owners of public transport buses entered an open-ended strike to protest the high license fees, traffic violations and taxes.

More than 75% of the population of the capital, Khartoum, depends on buses as the main means of transportation.

"Today we were surprised by the strike of the bus owners, which forced us to walk to the college," said Ramzi Saleh, a student at the College of Optics in Omdurman.

In a statement to Xinhua, he added that this is additional suffering in light of the economic deterioration and the suffering of various sectors of the Sudanese people.

Abdul Rahim Fadl, an owner of a public transport bus in Khartoum, defended the decision to strike.

He added, "There are significant increases in licensing fees, high traffic fines and taxes on the transport sector."

He continued, "These additional costs affect the transportation sector, and we cannot now provide them in light of the stability of the transfer value and our commitment to a lower value for students."

The transportation sector was joined by continuous strikes from various sectors, including education, university students, the tax sector and meteorology.

Sudanese economic analyst Kamal Awad warned of the effects of strikes on sectors, especially productivity.

"During the past year, more than 100 days were lost due to repeated strikes, which had negative effects on important service and production sectors," he said.

"The educational sector and academic achievement were also affected, and the Ministry of Education was forced to change the academic calendar several times," he continued.

Several Sudanese universities witness strikes from time to time due to the high tuition fees in public and private universities.

And 20 educational unions issued a statement today criticizing the increase in tuition fees in universities by nearly 800%.

"In light of the current economic conditions, the increase in university fees constitutes an additional burden on Sudanese families, who cannot afford the increase, which is nearly 800 percent compared to the previous academic year," the statement said.

The Sudanese teachers' strike has been going on for about a week, forcing the government to suspend classes until January 29.

An uncertain state prevails in the economic situation in Sudan, while efforts to pass the 2023 budget falter.

Sudan is suffering from an economic crisis due to the depreciation of the national currency, the increase in inflation rates and the high prices of consumer goods, while the official authorities are trying to address the revenue deficit by imposing fees and taxes.

The former transitional government headed by Abdalla Hamdok, which was formed in 2019, had begun to implement an economic reform plan, with the supervision of the World Bank, to obtain forgiveness for Sudan's foreign debt, which amounts to about $60 billion.

However, that plan was stalled after the measures taken by the Sudanese army commander, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, on October 25, to dissolve the government and impose a state of emergency.

The United States of America and international agencies suspended hundreds of millions of dollars in aid that were scheduled for Sudan, and stipulated the restoration of civilian rule.

Sudan's debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (IMF) initiative has stalled.

Washington hastened to freeze $700 million in emergency aid, while the process of disbursing $500 million in direct budget support, which was expected in late November from development agencies, stopped.

Nor was another $150m of the International Monetary Fund's so-called special drawing rights, which are used to boost official reserves.

Since the secession of South Sudan in 2011, Sudan has been facing a stifling economic crisis after losing two-thirds of its oil production.