Sudan Population: 45,047,502
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| 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 followed by a referendum on independence for Southern Sudan. The referendum was held in January 2011 and indicated overwhelming support for independence. 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 in December 2007. Peacekeeping troops have struggled to stabilize the situation, which has become increasingly regional in scope and has brought instability to eastern Chad. 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. |
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| Geography | |
| Dominated by the Nile and its tributaries | |
| Location: | Northern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea |
| Geographic coordinates: | 15 00 N, 30 00 E |
| Area: | total: 1,861,484 sq km land: NA water: NA Size comparison: slightly more than one-quarter the size of the US |
| Land Boundaries: | total: 6,751 km border countries: Central African Republic 175 km, Chad 1,360 km, Egypt 1,275 km, Eritrea 605 km, Ethiopia 769 km, Libya 383 km, South Sudan 2,184 km note: Sudan-South Sudan boundary represents 1 January 1956 alignment; final alignment pending negotiations and demarcation; final sovereignty status of Abyei region pending negotiations between Sudan and South Sudan |
| 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: | hot and dry; arid desert; rainy season varies by region (April to November) |
| Terrain: | generally flat, featureless plain; 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 |
| Land use: | arable land: NA permanent crops: NA other: NA |
| Irrigated land: | 18,630 sq km (2008) |
| Natural hazards: | dust storms and periodic persistent droughts |
| Current Environment Issues: | inadequate supplies of potable water; wildlife populations threatened by excessive hunting; soil erosion; desertification; periodic drought |
| International Environment 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 |
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| People | |
| Population: | 45,047,502 note: includes the population of South Sudan (8,260,490); demographic data includes South Sudan (July 2011 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 42.1% (male 9,696,726/female 9,286,894) 15-64 years: 55.2% (male 12,282,082/female 12,571,424) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 613,817/female 596,559) (2011 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 18.5 years male: 18.1 years female: 18.9 years (2011 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 2.484% (2011 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 36.12 births/1,000 population (2011 est.) |
| Death rate: | 11 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | -0.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 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: 1.05 male(s)/female total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 68.07 deaths/1,000 live births male: 68.77 deaths/1,000 live births female: 67.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 55.42 years male: 54.18 years female: 56.71 years (2011 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 4.84 children born/woman (2011 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 1.1% (2009 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 260,000 (2009 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | 12,000 (2009 est.) |
| Nationality: | noun: Sudanese (singular and plural) adjective: Sudanese |
| Ethnic groups: | Sudanese Arab (approximately 70%), Fur, Beja, Nuba, Fallata |
| Religions: | Sunni Muslim, small Christian minority |
| Languages: | Arabic (official), English (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, Fur 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.) |
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| Government | |
| 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 stipulated national elections in 2009, but these were subsequently rescheduled; elections took place in April 2010 and the NCP was elected as the majority party; due to the CPA stipulations, there is also an autonomous government in Southern Sudan where SPLM holds the majority of positions. |
| 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: | 15 states (wilayat, singular - wilayah); Al Bahr al Ahmar (Red Sea), Al Jazira (Gezira), Al Khartoum (Khartoum), Al Qadarif (Gedaref), An Nil al Abyad (White Nile), An Nil al Azraq (Blue Nile), Ash Shimaliyya (Northern), Gharb Darfur (Western Darfur), Janub Darfur (Southern Darfur), Janub Kurdufan (Southern Kordofan), Kassala, Nahr an Nil (River Nile), Shimal Darfur (Northern Darfur), Shimal Kurdufan (Northern Kordofan), Sinnar note: the Sudanese Government has announced the creation of two new states, Central Darfur and East Darfur, but they are not yet operational |
| 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: | mixed legal system of Islamic law and English common law in the north, and primarily customary law in the south |
| Suffrage: | 17 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: President Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16 October 1993); 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) 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 (For more information visit the World Leaders website ) elections: election on 11-15 April 2010; next to be held in 2015 election results: Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR reelected president; percent of vote - Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR 68.2%, Yasir ARMAN 21.7%, Abdullah Deng NHIAL 3.9%, others 6.2% 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; 60% from geographic constituencies, 25% from a women's list, and 15% from party lists; members to serve six-year terms) elections: last held on 11-15 April 2010 (next to be held in 2016) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NCP 323, SPLM 99, PCP 4, DUP 4, UFP 3, URRP 2, DUPO 2, SPLM-DC 2, other 7, vacant 4 |
| 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: | Democratic Unionist Party or DUP [Hatim al-SIR]; Democratic Unionist Party-Original or DUPO; National Congress Party or NCP [Umar Hassan al-BASHIR]; Popular Congress Party or PCP [Hassan al-TURABI]; Sudan People's Liberation Movement or SPLM [Malik AGGAR]; Sudan People's Liberation Movement-Democratic Change or SPLM-DC; Umma Federal Party or UFP; Umma Renewal and Reform Party or URRP |
| 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] |
| International organization participation: | ABEDA, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Emad Mirghani ALTOHAMY chancery: 2210 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 338-8565 FAX: [1] (202) 667-2406 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Robert E. WHITEHEAD 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 |
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| Economy | |
| Since 1997, Sudan has been working with the IMF to implement macroeconomic reforms including a managed float of the exchange rate and a large reserve of foreign exchange. A new currency, the Sudanese Pound, was introduced in January 2007 at an initial exchange rate of $1.00 equals 2 Sudanese Pounds. Sudan began exporting crude oil in the last quarter of 1999 and the economy boomed on the back of increases in oil production, high oil prices, and significant inflows of foreign direct investment until the second half of 2008. 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 to come despite rapid rises in average per capita income. Sudan's real GDP expanded by 5.2% during 2010, an improvement over 2009's 4.2% growth but significantly below the more than 10% per year growth experienced prior to the global financial crisis in 2006 and 2007. While the oil sector continues to drive growth, services and utilities play an increasingly important role in the economy with agriculture production remaining important as it employs 80% of the work force and contributes a third of GDP. In the lead up to the referendum on southern secession, which took place in January 2011, Sudan saw its currency depreciate considerably on the black market with the Central Bank's official rate also losing value as the Sudanese people started to hoard foreign currency. The Central Bank of Sudan intervened heavily in the currency market to defend the value of the pound and the Sudanese government introduced a number of measures to restrain excess local demand for hard currency, but uncertainty about the secession has meant that foreign exchange remains in heavy demand. | |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | GDP (purchasing power parity): $100 billion (2010 est.) $95.18 billion (2009 est.) $89.81 billion (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | GDP (official exchange rate): $68.44 billion (2010 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate: | 5.1% (2010 est.) 6% (2009 est.) 6.8% (2008 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | GDP - per capita (PPP): $2,300 (2010 est.) $2,200 (2009 est.) $2,200 (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
| GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 30.5% industry: 29.5% services: 39.9% (2010 est.) |
| Labor force: | 11.92 million (2007 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: 80% industry: 7% services: 13% (1998 est.) |
| Unemployment rate: | 18.7% (2002 est.) |
| Population below poverty line: | 40% (2004 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | Inflation rate (consumer prices): 13.1% (2010 est.) 11.2% (2009 est.) |
| Investment (gross fixed): | Investment (gross fixed): 26.8% of GDP (2010 est.) |
| Budget: | revenues: $11.32 billion expenditures: $13.35 billion (2010 est.) |
| Public debt: | 92.6% of GDP (2010 est.) 106.5% of GDP (2009 est.) |
| Agriculture - products: | cotton, groundnuts (peanuts), sorghum, millet, wheat, gum arabic, sugarcane, cassava (tapioca), mangos, papaya, bananas, sweet potatoes, sesame; sheep and other livestock |
| Industries: | oil, cotton ginning, textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap distilling, shoes, petroleum refining, pharmaceuticals, armaments, automobile/light truck assembly |
| Industrial production growth rate: | 3.5% (2010 est.) |
| Electricity - production: | 4.323 billion kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - consumption: | 3.787 billion kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (2009 est.) |
| Electricity - imports: | 0 kWh (2009 est.) |
| Oil - production: | 514,300 bbl/day (2010 est.) |
| Oil - consumption: | 98,000 bbl/day (2010 est.) |
| Oil - exports: | 383,900 bbl/day (2009 est.) |
| Oil - imports: | 11,820 bbl/day (2009 est.) |
| Oil - proved reserves: | 5 billion bbl (1 January 2011 est.) |
| Natural gas - production: | 0 cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - consumption: | 0 cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - exports: | 0 cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - imports: | 0 cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - proved reserves: | 84.95 billion cu m (1 January 2011 est.) |
| Current account balance: | -$4.119 billion (2010 est.) -$3.908 billion (2009 est.) |
| Exports: | $10.29 billion (2010 est.) $7.834 billion (2009 est.) |
| Exports - commodities: | oil and petroleum products; cotton, sesame, livestock, groundnuts, gum arabic, sugar |
| Exports - partners: | China 68.3%, Japan 12.6%, India 5.8% (2010) |
| Imports: | $9.176 billion (2010 est.) $8.528 billion (2009 est.) |
| Imports - commodities: | foodstuffs, manufactured goods, refinery and transport equipment, medicines and chemicals, textiles, wheat |
| Imports - partners: | China 21.7%, Egypt 8%, Saudi Arabia 7.7%, India 6.1%, UAE 5.7% (2010) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: | $2.063 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $897 million (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Debt - external: | $37.73 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $35.72 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Market value of publicly traded shares: | $NA |
| Exchange rates: | Sudanese pounds (SDG) per US dollar - 2.36 (2010) 2.3 (2009) 2.1 (2008) 2.06 (2007) 2.172 (2006) |
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| Communications | |
| Telephones in use: | 370,400 (2009) country comparison to the world: 106 |
| Cellular Phones in use: | 15.34 million (2009) |
| 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: | |
| Television broadcast stations: | |
| Internet country code: | .sd |
| Internet hosts: | 70 (2010) |
| Internet users: | 4.2 million (2008) |
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| Transportation | |
| Airports: | 116 (2011) country comparison to the world: 52 |
| Airports (paved runways): | total: 17 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2011) |
| Airports (unpaved runways): | total: 99 1,524 to 2,437 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 46 under 914 m: 37 (2011) |
| Heliports: | 5 (2010) |
| Pipelines: | gas 156 km; oil 4,070 km; refined products 1,613 km (2010) |
| Railways: | total: 5,978 km narrow gauge: 4,578 km 1.067-m gauge; 1,400 km 0.600-m gauge for cotton plantations (2010) |
| 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: 2 by type: cargo 2 (2010) |
| Ports and terminals: | Port Sudan |
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| Military | |
| Military branches: | Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF): Land Forces, Navy (includes Marines), Sudanese Air Force (Sikakh al-Jawwiya as-Sudaniya), Popular Defense Forces (2011) |
| Military service age and obligation: | 18-33 years of age for male and female compulsory and voluntary military service; 1-2 year service obligation; a requirement that completion of national sevice was mandatory before entering public or private sector employment has been cancelled (2011) |
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 16-49: 10,433,973 females age 16-49: 10,411,443 (2010 est.) |
| Manpower fit for military service: | males age 16-49: 6,475,530 females age 16-49: 6,840,885 (2010 est.) |
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