Sudan: Passenger boat sinks in the Blue Nile

There were 29 people on board the vessel when it capsized and sunk on Friday in southeastern Sennar province, according to the state-run SUNA news agency.

Sudanese authorities reported Monday the sinking of a boat on the Blue Nile and said at least 23 women are believed to have drowned. At least 22 people — 21 students and a woman — drowned in 2018, when a boat sank in the Nile in Sudan. The women were daily laborers working on farms in the Souki region and were returning home when their boat capsized.

Such accidents on overloaded boats are unfortunately not uncommon on waterways in the country, where safety measures are often disregarded. The Blue Nile is an important transport route for people and goods in the African nation.