Military
regimes favoring Islamic-oriented governments have dominated national politics
since independence from the UK in 1956. Sudan was embroiled in two prolonged
civil wars during most of the remainder of the 20th century. These conflicts
were rooted in northern economic, political, and social domination of largely
non-Muslim, non-Arab southern Sudanese. The first civil war ended in 1972 but
broke out again in 1983. The second war and famine-related effects resulted in
more than four million people displaced and, according to rebel estimates, more
than two million deaths over a period of two decades. Peace talks gained
momentum in 2002-04 with the signing of several accords. The final North/South
Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), signed in January 2005, granted the
southern rebels autonomy for six years. After which, a referendum for
independence is scheduled to be held. A separate conflict, which broke out in
the western region of Darfur in 2003, has displaced nearly two million people
and caused an estimated 200,000 to 400,000 deaths. The UN took command of the
Darfur peacekeeping operation from the African Union on 31 December 2007.
As
of early 2009, peacekeeping troops were struggling to stabilize the situation,
which has become increasingly regional in scope, and has brought instability to
eastern Chad, and Sudanese incursions into the Central African Republic. Sudan
also has faced large refugee influxes from neighboring countries, primarily
Ethiopia and Chad. Armed conflict, poor transport infrastructure, and lack of
government support have chronically obstructed the provision of humanitarian
assistance to affected populations.
On
Our Watch - A documentary about genocide in Darfur
The
effects of Sudan's almost constant ethnic and rebel militia fighting since the
mid-twentieth century have penetrated all of its border states that provide
shelter for fleeing refugees and cover to disparate domestic and foreign
conflicting elements; since 2003, Janjawid armed militia and Sudanese military
have driven about 200,000 Darfur region refugees into eastern Chad; large
numbers of Sudanese refugees have also fled to Uganda, Ethiopia, Kenya, the
Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo; southern
Sudan provides shelter to Ugandans seeking periodic protection from soldiers of
the Lord's Resistance Army; Sudan accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel
groups; efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Ethiopia have been delayed
by civil and ethnic fighting in Sudan; Kenya's administrative boundary extends
into the southern Sudan, creating the "Ilemi Triangle"; Egypt and
Sudan retain claims to administer triangular areas that extend north and south
of the 1899 Treaty boundary along the 22nd Parallel, but have withdrawn their
military presence; Egypt is economically developing the "Hala'ib
Triangle" north of the Treaty Line; periodic violent skirmishes with
Sudanese residents over water and grazing rights persist among related pastoral
populations from the Central African Republic along the border.
March
27, 2008 UNHCR Video Recent violence in Darfur has forced tens of thousands of
people from their homes and made the delivery of aid almost impossible. A joint
UN humanitarian mission recently visited Sirba, one of the one of the towns that
came under attack.
Population:
41,236,378
The Darfur conflictis an
ongoing armed conflict in the Darfur region of western Sudan.
George
Clooney & Don Cheadle on Dafur-part 1
In 2003, militants accused the
government of President Omar al-Bashir of neglecting the region and oppressing
black Africans in favour of Arabs in the state of Darfur. Over half of the
people in the area are subsistence farmers, with the rest being nomadic or
semi-nomadic herders. The government, caught by surprise by the militants'
attacks, had very few troops in the region. In response, it mounted a campaign
of aerial bombardment in support of ground attacks by an Arab militia, the
Janjaweed, that it had recruited from local tribes. More than 2.5 million people
have fled their homes since the fighting began.
George
Clooney&Don Cheadle on the Dafur-Part 2
The majority of the displaced
people in Darfur - more than 2 million - are now living in camps where they are
almost entirely dependent on international humanitarian assistance. They cannot
leave the camps because they continue to be attacked by the militias.
The U.N. estimates that an
additional 1.5 million people, not displaced, are in need of humanitarian
assistance - a total of 3.5 million in Darfur, more than half its estimated
population of 6 million.
Estimates of deaths in the
conflict have ranged from 50,000 to 450,000 The mass media has described
the conflict as both "ethnic cleansing" and "genocide."
The rebels say the government is
oppressing black Africans in favor of Arabs.
Sudanese government forces and
ethnic militia called "Janjaweed" have engaged in an armed conflict with
rebel groups called the Sudanese Liberation Army/Movement (SLA/SLM) and the
Justice and Equality Movement (JEM).
Darfur, which means land of the
Fur, has faced many years of tension over land and grazing rights between the
mostly nomadic Arabs, and farmers from the Fur, Massaleet and Zagawa
communities.
On November 15, 2007, nine rebel
groups - six SLM factions, the Democratic Popular Front, the Sudanese
Revolutionary Front and the Justice and Equality Movement - Field Revolutionary
Command - signed a Charter of Unification and agreed to operate under the name
of SLM/A henceforth.
Introduction
Sudan
Background:
Military
regimes favoring Islamic-oriented governments have dominated national
politics since independence from the UK in 1956. Sudan was embroiled in
two prolonged civil wars during most of the remainder of the 20th
century. These conflicts were rooted in northern economic, political,
and social domination of largely non-Muslim, non-Arab southern Sudanese.
The first civil war ended in 1972 but broke out again in 1983. The
second war and famine-related effects resulted in more than four million
people displaced and, according to rebel estimates, more than two
million deaths over a period of two decades. Peace talks gained momentum
in 2002-04 with the signing of several accords. The final North/South
Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), signed in January 2005, granted the
southern rebels autonomy for six years. After which, a referendum for
independence is scheduled to be held. A separate conflict, which broke
out in the western region of Darfur in 2003, has displaced nearly two
million people and caused an estimated 200,000 to 400,000 deaths. The UN
took command of the Darfur peacekeeping operation from the African Union
on 31 December 2007. As of early 2009, peacekeeping troops were
struggling to stabilize the situation, which has become increasingly
regional in scope, and has brought instability to eastern Chad, and
Sudanese incursions into the Central African Republic. Sudan also has
faced large refugee influxes from neighboring countries, primarily
Ethiopia and Chad. Armed conflict, poor transport infrastructure, and
lack of government support have chronically obstructed the provision of
humanitarian assistance to affected populations.
Geography
Sudan
Location:
Northern
Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea
Geographic coordinates:
15
00 N, 30 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total:
2,505,810 sq km land: 2.376 million sq km water: 129,810 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly
more than one-quarter the size of the US
Land boundaries:
total:
7,687 km border countries: Central African Republic 1,165 km, Chad 1,360
km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 628 km, Egypt 1,273 km, Eritrea 605
km, Ethiopia 1,606 km, Kenya 232 km, Libya 383 km, Uganda 435 km
Coastline:
853
km
Maritime claims:
territorial
sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 18 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:
tropical
in south; arid desert in north; rainy season varies by region (April to
November)
Terrain:
generally
flat, featureless plain; mountains in far south, northeast and west;
desert dominates the north
Elevation extremes:
lowest
point: Red Sea 0 m highest point: Kinyeti 3,187 m
Natural resources:
petroleum;
small reserves of iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc, tungsten, mica,
silver, gold, hydropower
total:
37.32 cu km/yr (3%/1%/97%) per capita: 1,030 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
dust
storms and periodic persistent droughts
Environment - current
issues:
inadequate
supplies of potable water; wildlife populations threatened by excessive
hunting; soil erosion; desertification; periodic drought
Environment -
international agreements:
party
to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea,
Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
largest
country in Africa; dominated by the Nile and its tributaries
total:
19.1 years male: 18.9 years female: 19.2 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.143%
(2009 est.)
Birth rate:
33.74
births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Death rate:
13.64
deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.63
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Urbanization:
urban
population: 43% of total population (2008) rate of urbanization: 4.3% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at
birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.07 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total:
82.43 deaths/1,000 live births male: 82.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 82.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total
population: 51.42 years male: 50.49 years female: 52.4 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.48
children born/woman (2009 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult
prevalence rate:
1.4%
(2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living
with HIV/AIDS:
320,000
(2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
25,000
(2007 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree
of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea,
hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, African
trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness) water contact disease: schistosomiasis respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis animal contact disease: rabies note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified
in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases
possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2009)
Nationality:
noun:
Sudanese (singular and plural) adjective: Sudanese
Ethnic groups:
black
52%, Arab 39%, Beja 6%, foreigners 2%, other 1%
Religions:
Sunni
Muslim 70% (in north), Christian 5% (mostly in south and Khartoum),
indigenous beliefs 25%
Languages:
Arabic
(official), English (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, diverse dialects of
Nilotic, Nilo-Hamitic, Sudanic languages note: program of "Arabization" in process
Literacy:
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 61.1% male: 71.8% female: 50.5% (2003 est.)
Education expenditures:
6%
of GDP (1991)
Government
Sudan
Country name:
conventional
long form: Republic of the Sudan conventional short form: Sudan local long form: Jumhuriyat as-Sudan local short form: As-Sudan former: Anglo-Egyptian Sudan
Government type:
Government
of National Unity (GNU) - the National Congress Party (NCP) and Sudan
People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) formed a power-sharing government
under the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA); the NCP, which came
to power by military coup in 1989, is the majority partner; the
agreement stipulates national elections in 2009
Capital:
name:
Khartoum geographic coordinates: 15 36 N, 32 32 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
25
states (wilayat, singular - wilayah); A'ali an Nil (Upper Nile), Al Bahr
al Ahmar (Red Sea), Al Buhayrat (Lakes), Al Jazirah (El Gezira), Al
Khartum (Khartoum), Al Qadarif (Gedaref), Al Wahdah (Unity), An Nil al
Abyad (White Nile), An Nil al Azraq (Blue Nile), Ash Shamaliyah
(Northern), Bahr al Jabal (Bahr al Jebel), Gharb al Istiwa'iyah (Western
Equatoria), Gharb Bahr al Ghazal (Western Bahr al Ghazal), Gharb Darfur
(Western Darfur), Janub Darfur (Southern Darfur), Janub Kurdufan
(Southern Kordofan), Junqali (Jonglei), Kassala (Kassala), Nahr an Nil
(River Nile), Shamal Bahr al Ghazal (Northern Bahr al Ghazal), Shamal
Darfur (Northern Darfur), Shamal Kurdufan (Northern Kordofan), Sharq al
Istiwa'iyah (Eastern Equatoria), Sinnar (Sinnar), Warab (Warab)
Independence:
1
January 1956 (from Egypt and the UK)
National holiday:
Independence
Day, 1 January (1956)
Constitution:
Interim
National Constitution ratified 5 July 2005 note: under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, the Interim
National Constitution was ratified 5 July 2005; Constitution of Southern
Sudan was signed December 2005
Legal system:
based
on English common law and Islamic law; as of 20 January 1991, the now
defunct Revolutionary Command Council imposed Islamic law in the
northern states; Islamic law applies to all residents of the northern
states regardless of their religion; however, the CPA establishes some
protections for non-Muslims in Khartoum; some separate religious courts;
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; the southern
legal system is still developing under the CPA following the civil war;
Islamic law will not apply to the southern states
Suffrage:
17
years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief
of state: President Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16 October
1993); First Vice President Salva KIIR (since 4 August 2005), Vice
President Ali Osman TAHA (since 20 September 2005); note - the president
is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since
16 October 1993); First Vice President Salva KIIR (since 4 August 2005),
Vice President Ali Osman TAHA (since 20 September 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president; note -
the National Congress Party or NCP (formerly the National Islamic Front
or NIF) dominates al-BASHIR's cabinet elections: election last held 13-23 December 2000; next to be
held February 2010 election results: Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR reelected
president; percent of vote - Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR 86.5%, Ja'afar
Muhammed NUMAYRI 9.6%, three other candidates received a combined vote
of 3.9%; election widely viewed as rigged; all popular opposition
parties boycotted elections because of a lack of guarantees for a free
and fair election note: al-BASHIR assumed power as chairman of Sudan's
Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation (RCC) in June 1989
and served concurrently as chief of state, chairman of the RCC, prime
minister, and minister of defense until mid-October 1993 when he was
appointed president by the RCC; he was elected president by popular vote
for the first time in March 1996
Legislative branch:
bicameral
National Legislature consists of a Council of States (50 seats; members
indirectly elected by state legislatures to serve six-year terms) and a
National Assembly (450 seats; members presently appointed, but in the
future 60% from geographic constituencies, 25% from a women's list, and
15% from party lists; to serve six-year terms) elections: last held 13-22 December 2000 (next to be held
February 2010) election results: NCP 355, others 5; note - replaced by
appointments under the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement
Judicial branch:
Constitutional
Court of nine justices; National Supreme Court; National Courts of
Appeal; other national courts; National Judicial Service Commission will
undertake overall management of the National Judiciary
Political parties and
leaders:
National
Congress Party or NCP [Umar Hassan al-BASHIR]; Sudan People's Liberation
Movement or SPLM [Salva KIIR]; and elements of the National Democratic
Alliance or NDA including factions of the Democratic Union Party
[Muhammad Uthman al-MIRGHANI] and Umma Party; Popular Congress Party or
PCP [Hassan al-TURABI]
Political pressure groups
and leaders:
Umma
Party [SADIQ Siddiq al-Mahdi]; Popular Congress Party or PCP [Hassan al-TURABI];
Darfur rebel groups including the Justice and Equality Movement or JEM [Khalil
IBRAHIM] and the Sudan Liberation Movement or SLM [various factional
leaders]
chief
of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Alberto M.
FERNANDEZ embassy: Sharia Ali Abdul Latif Street, Khartoum mailing address: P. O. Box 699, Khartoum; APO AE 09829 telephone: [249] (183) 774700 through 704 FAX: [249] (183) 774137
Flag description:
three
equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with a green
isosceles triangle based on the hoist side
Economy
Sudan
Economy - overview:
Until
the second half of 2008, Sudan's economy boomed on the back of increases
in oil production, high oil prices, and large inflows of foreign direct
investment. GDP growth registered more than 10% per year in 2006 and
2007. From 1997 to date, Sudan has been working with the IMF to
implement macroeconomic reforms, including a managed float of the
exchange rate. Sudan began exporting crude oil in the last quarter of
1999. Agricultural production remains important, because it employs 80%
of the work force and contributes a third of GDP. The Darfur conflict,
the aftermath of two decades of civil war in the south, the lack of
basic infrastructure in large areas, and a reliance by much of the
population on subsistence agriculture ensure much of the population will
remain at or below the poverty line for years despite rapid rises in
average per capita income. In January 2007, the government introduced a
new currency, the Sudanese Pound, at an initial exchange rate of $1.00
equals 2 Sudanese Pounds.
GDP (purchasing power
parity):
$87.27
billion (2008 est.)
$82.72 billion (2007)
$75.06 billion (2006) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
foodstuffs,
manufactured goods, refinery and transport equipment, medicines and
chemicals, textiles, wheat
Imports - partners:
China
27.9%, Saudi Arabia 7.5%, India 6.3%, Egypt 5.6%, UAE 5.5%, Japan 4.2%
(2007)
Reserves of foreign
exchange and gold:
$2.329
billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Debt - external:
$30.48
billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Currency (code):
Sudanese
pounds (SDG)
Currency code:
SDD
Exchange rates:
Sudanese
pounds (SDG) per US dollar - 2.1 (2008 est.), 2.06 (2007), 2.172 (2006),
2.4361 (2005), 2.5791 (2004) note: in October 2007 Sudan redenominated its currency by
transforming 100 units of Sudanese dinar into one unit of Sudanese pound
Communications
Sudan
Telephones - main lines in
use:
345,200
(2007)
Telephones - mobile
cellular:
7.464
million (2007)
Telephone system:
general
assessment: well-equipped system by regional standards and being
upgraded; cellular communications started in 1996 and have expanded
substantially with wide coverage of most major cities domestic: consists of microwave radio relay, cable, fiber optic,
radiotelephone communications, tropospheric scatter, and a domestic
satellite system with 14 earth stations international: country code - 249; linked to international
submarine cable Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); satellite
earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Arabsat (2000)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM
12, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios:
7.55
million (1997)
Television broadcast
stations:
3
(1997)
Televisions:
2.38
million (1997)
Internet country code:
.sd
Internet hosts:
33
(2008)
Internet Service Providers
(ISPs):
2
(2002)
Internet users:
1.5
million (2007)
Transportation
Sudan
Airports:
109
(2008)
Airports - with paved
runways:
total:
17 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2008)
Airports - with unpaved
runways:
total:
92 1,524 to 2,437 m: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 43 under 914 m: 31 (2008)
Heliports:
4
(2007)
Pipelines:
gas
156 km; oil 4,070 km; refined products 1,613 km (2008)
Railways:
total:
5,978 km narrow gauge: 4,578 km 1.067-m gauge; 1,400 km 0.600-m gauge for
cotton plantations (2006)
Roadways:
total:
11,900 km paved: 4,320 km unpaved: 7,580 km (2000)
Waterways:
4,068
km (1,723 km open year round on White and Blue Nile rivers) (2008)
Merchant marine:
total:
3 by type: cargo 2, carrier 1 (2008)
Ports and terminals:
Port
Sudan
Military
Sudan
Military branches:
Sudanese
Armed Forces (SAF): Land Forces, Navy, Sudanese Air Force (Sikakh al-Jawwiya
as-Sudaniya), Popular Defense Forces; Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA):
Land Forces (2009)
Military service age and
obligation:
18-33
years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; 12-24 month
service obligation (2009)
Manpower available for
military service:
males
age 16-49: 9,639,923 females age 16-49: 9,321,106 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military
service:
males
age 16-49: 5,836,971 females age 16-49: 5,942,043 (2009 est.)
Manpower reaching
militarily significant age annually:
male:
498,376 female: 479,005 (2009 est.)
Military expenditures:
3%
of GDP (2005 est.)
Transnational
Issues
Sudan
Disputes - international:
the
effects of Sudan's almost constant ethnic and rebel militia fighting
since the mid-20th century have penetrated all of the neighboring
states; as of 2006, Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, Central African Republic,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Uganda provided shelter for over
half a million Sudanese refugees, which includes 240,000 Darfur
residents driven from their homes by Janjawid armed militia and the
Sudanese military forces; Sudan, in turn, hosted about 116,000 Eritreans,
20,000 Chadians, and smaller numbers of Ethiopians, Ugandans, Central
Africans, and Congolese as refugees; in February 2006, Sudan and DROC
signed an agreement to repatriate 13,300 Sudanese and 6,800 Congolese;
Sudan accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups; efforts to
demarcate the porous boundary with Ethiopia proceed slowly due to civil
and ethnic fighting in eastern Sudan; the boundary that separates Kenya
and Sudan's sovereignty is unclear in the "Ilemi Triangle,"
which Kenya has administered since colonial times; while Sudan claims to
administer the Hala'ib Triangle north of the 1899 Treaty boundary along
the 22nd Parallel; both states withdrew their military presence in the
1990s, and Egypt has invested in and effectively administers the area;
periodic violent skirmishes with Sudanese residents over water and
grazing rights persist among related pastoral populations along the
border with the Central African Republic
Refugees and internally
displaced persons:
refugees
(country of origin): 157,220 (Eritrea); 25,023 (Chad); 11,009
(Ethiopia); 7,895 (Uganda); 5,023 (Central African Republic) IDPs: 5.3 - 6.2 million (civil war 1983-2005; ongoing conflict in
Darfur region) (2007)
Trafficking in persons:
current
situation: Sudan is a source country for men, women, and children
trafficked internally for the purposes of forced labor and sexual
exploitation; Sudan is also a transit and destination country for
Ethiopian women trafficked abroad for domestic servitude; Sudanese women
and girls are trafficked within the country, as well as possibly to
Middle Eastern countries for domestic servitude; the terrorist rebel
organization, Lord's Resistance Army, continues to harbor small numbers
of Sudanese and Ugandan children in the southern part of the country for
use as cooks, porters, and combatants; some of these children are also
trafficked across borders into Uganda or the Democratic Republic of the
Congo; militia groups in Darfur, some of which are linked to the
government, abduct women for short periods of forced labor and to
perpetrate sexual violence; during the two decades-long north-south
civil war, thousands of Dinka women and children were abducted and
subsequently enslaved by members of the Missiriya and Rezeigat tribes;
while there have been no known new abductions of Dinka by members of
Baggara tribes in the last few years, inter-tribal abductions continue
in southern Sudan tier rating: Tier 3 - Sudan does not fully comply with the
minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making
significant efforts to do so; combating human trafficking through law
enforcement or prevention measures was not a priority for the government
in 2007 (2008)
