The Face of Truth | Dr. Ibrahim Shaglawi Sudan: From Joseph’s Ordeal to His Wisdom
In a previous article entitled “Al-Burhan and the Question of the Lean Years,” we examined the outcome of the past seven years and the structural deficiencies they revealed in the state and the management of power, as well as how the country moved from a faltering political transition to a war that placed its very existence and institutions before a historic test. We concluded that the value of this period would not be determined solely by the military resilience demonstrated, but by its ability to transform sacrifices and victories into a state and institutions. Today, as the end of 2026 approaches and we welcome a new year, the question returns in a different form: Will we learn wisdom from Joseph’s ordeal, or will we content ourselves with counting our lean years?
In the story of Joseph, peace be upon him, the lean years were a test of political wisdom and sound governance. The escape from famine came through a vision that anticipated the crisis, a plan that managed resources wisely, and leadership capable of turning knowledge into decisions, and decisions into food security and social stability.
Herein lies the lesson Sudan needs today: crises do not end merely when their causes disappear. Rather, opportunities to overcome them begin when attentive will, vision, and sound judgment are present.
The war has revealed that our country’s crisis is deeper than military confrontation, and that the fragility of the political structure, weak institutions, the absence of oversight, and overlapping centers of decision-making were among the deficiencies that made the state more vulnerable to collapse.
It has also demonstrated that temporary political balances cannot replace institutions, and that protecting the state is not complete merely by preserving its existence; it requires rebuilding it on new foundations. Therefore, the challenge facing the country’s leadership today is to move from the mindset of managing war to the mindset of building a state.
In my view, the first steps in this transformation begin with reorganizing the executive branch through the merger of ministries. Sudan needs a lean and effective government built on competence, experience, and integrity, away from favoritism. A government that clearly defines its priorities, links responsibility to accountability and achievement, and grants executive leaders genuine authority within a declared work program. The current phase cannot tolerate the continued management of files with a “piecework” mentality; rather, it requires statesmen capable of turning resources and decisions into tangible results in people’s lives.
However, government reform alone is not enough. The absence of a legislative council and oversight of executive performance remains one of the deficiencies that must be addressed. It is essential to establish a legislative and oversight framework based on national consensus, ensuring performance monitoring and limiting any party’s monopoly over decision-making. A modern state functions properly through institutional balance, clear jurisdictions, the rule of law, and accountability.
On the political front, there is a growing need to support the Sudanese-Sudanese dialogue in reaching consensus on the future of the state. This dialogue should accommodate political, community, and professional forces, as well as youth, women, displaced persons, and refugees, without turning into a process of power-sharing quotas or reproducing the elites that failed to manage the previous phase.
It should be founded on clear national constants, foremost among them Sudan’s unity and sovereignty, the unity of the military institution, adherence to the constitution and the law, and the transition toward stable national governance. National reconciliation does not mean abandoning justice, and political consensus should not become a path to escaping accountability.
On the security front, building a single national army that monopolizes the use of armed force in accordance with the constitution and the law is a fundamental condition for restoring the state. This requires effective security arrangements, addressing the consequences of war, protecting civilians, and creating conditions for the voluntary and safe return of refugees and displaced persons, alongside serious diplomatic action to halt external interventions and cut off the militia’s sources of funding and arms. Sustainable peace cannot be built amid multiple centers of armed power or while the country continues to be turned into an arena for settling regional and international conflicts of interest.
Economically, the country must move from emergency response to a national rescue and reconstruction program that restores the role of agricultural and industrial production, protects the agricultural season, reforms the banking sector, regulates revenues, and directs spending toward services and infrastructure. Sudan does not lack resources as much as it lacks the management capable of transforming them into added value, jobs, and stability.
In its foreign relations, the country needs a clear policy driven by national interests, a unified diplomatic platform, and an approach to regional and international initiatives as supporting tools rather than substitutes for Sudanese will. A state that lacks a unified vision of its interests remains vulnerable to blackmail.
From the perspective of #TheFaceOfTruth, the question we previously raised about the outcome of the lean years now finds its extension in the question of wisdom. History does not grant leaders their standing merely for surviving crises, but for their ability to turn moments of danger into opportunities to build the future. The experience of Joseph, peace be upon him, teaches us that success lies not in surviving famine, but in possessing the vision that prevents its recurrence. Herein lies the responsibility of leadership: to recognize that the requirements of war differ from those of construction, and that protecting the state must be followed by the courage to reform it.
Wishing you continued well-being.
Thursday, November 5, 2026
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