Sudan Location:
Physical. Sudan is located in Northern Africa bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea. It covers an area slightly less than one-quarter the size of the US. The climate is tropical in the south with an arid desert in the north. The rainy season lasts from April to October. The terrain is generally a flat plain with mountains in the east and west. Natural resources include petroleum, small ore reserves, and hydropower.
Sudan Geography:
Area: 967,247 square miles
Capital: Khartoum (pop 2,853,000)
Environmental concerns: insufficient potable water; excessive hunting of wildlife; soil erosion; desertification
Geographical features: generally flat, featureless plain with mountains in the east and west
Climate: arid desert to tropical
Sudan People:
People. Around 37 million people live in the Sudan. Arabic is the official language with diverse dialects. The population is black (52%) Arab (39%) and Beja (6%). Religious practices are mainly Sunni Muslim in the north (70%) indigenous beliefs (25%) Christian (5% mostly in the south and Khartoum).
37,091,000 people; black (52%); Arab (39%); Beja (6%)
Annual growth rate: 2.73%
Major languages are Arabic; Sudanic language; Nubian; English
Religions: Sunni Muslim (70%); indigenous beliefs (25%); Christian (5%)
Sudan Government:
Government. Sudan is Africa’s largest country. Apart from an 11-year period of peace, it has been torn by civil war since its independence in 1956. The strife is mainly between the mostly Muslim north and the animist and Christian south. Sudan’s size, great ethnic and religious diversity make building a sense of national unity difficult. The current regime rules through massive repression and genocide.
Current president, Omar Bashir was reelected in 2001 for 5 years, but the elections were boycotted by the main opposition parties. The Machakos Protocol of July 2002, signed by both the government and the two largest southern rebel groups, provides for a referendum on self-determination in the south after a 6-year interval. Despite signing, the Muslim-led Sudanese government has continued to attack southern Christian groups. There is evidence of widespread enslavement of blacks in the south. The Sudanese government has practiced one of the largest cases of genocide since Rwanda with thousands killed in 2004. A peace agreement was signed on January 9, 2005.
With international commitment and support, there is hope for a lasting peace. However continued civil war is likely unless the international community compels the government to cease the enslavement of its people, grant self-determination in the south and cease trying to impose an Islamic state on its religiously mixed population.
Sudan’s government is in transition and it first gained independence from Egypt and the United Kingdom on January 1, 1956
President Omar Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir is both head of state and government
4 major political parties
Universal suffrage at 17
Sudan Communication:
Communication and transportation
400,000 main telephone lines
300,000 Internet users (2003)
7,198 miles of highway (much barely usable)
3,425 miles of railroad
65 airfields
75,000 motor vehicles
Sudan Economy:
Economy. With the discovery of major oil fields in the south, the government has attempted to establish safe enclaves for the exploitation of these oil fields at the cost of relocating the people living in the area. The funds generated by the oil fields are being used by the government to finance the war against its peoples in the south.
Although economic potential exists, recent conflicts have left Sudan one of the poorest nations in the world. Persistent warfare and lack of financing are blocking needed infrastructure improvement. Displacement of the population, drought and desertification have also contributed to the crisis.
Currency: pounds
Per capita GDP: $1,360
GDP: $ 49.3 billion
GDP growth rate: 5.5%
Inflation rate: 10%
Labor force: 80% agriculture; 13% government; 7% industry and commerce
Sudan More Information:
www.sudan.net
www.sudanhome.com
www.sudmer.com
www.sunanews.net
www.sas.upenn.edu | 
