| Background: |
Military
dictatorships promulgating an Islamic government have mostly
run the country since independence from the UK in 1956. Over
the past two decades, a civil war pitting black Christians
and animists in the south against the Arab-Muslims of the
north has cost at least 1.5 million lives in war- and
famine-related deaths, as well as the displacement of
millions of others. |
| Location: |
Northern Africa,
bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea |
| Geographic
coordinates: |
15 00 N, 30 00 E |
| 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 |
| Maritime
claims: |
contiguous
zone: 18 NM
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth
of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM |
| Climate: |
tropical in
south; arid desert in north; rainy season (April to October) |
| Terrain: |
generally flat,
featureless plain; mountains in east and west |
| 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:
5%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 46%
forests and woodland: 19%
other: 30% (1993 est.) |
| Irrigated
land: |
19,460 sq km
(1993 est.) |
| Natural
hazards: |
dust storms |
| Environment
- current issues: |
inadequate
supplies of potable water; wildlife populations threatened
by excessive hunting; soil erosion; desertification |
| Environment
- international agreements: |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
| Geography
- note: |
largest country
in Africa; dominated by the Nile and its tributaries |
| Population: |
36,080,373 (July
2001 est.) |
| Age
structure: |
0-14 years:
44.62% (male 8,227,011; female 7,870,783)
15-64 years: 53.29% (male 9,619,218; female
9,608,469)
65 years and over: 2.09% (male 425,898; female
328,994) (2001 est.) |
| Population
growth rate: |
2.79% (2001 est.) |
| Birth
rate: |
37.89
births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Death
rate: |
10.04
deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Net
migration rate: |
0.04 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2001 est.) |
| Sex
ratio: |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.29 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2001
est.) |
| Infant
mortality rate: |
68.67
deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Life
expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 56.94 years
male: 55.85 years
female: 58.08 years (2001 est.) |
| Total
fertility rate: |
5.35 children
born/woman (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- adult prevalence rate: |
0.99% (1999 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS
- people living with HIV/AIDS: |
NA |
| 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), indigenous beliefs 25%, Christian 5% (mostly in
south and Khartoum) |
| Languages: |
Arabic
(official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, diverse dialects of Nilotic,
Nilo-Hamitic, Sudanic languages, English
note: program of "Arabization" in
process |
| Literacy: |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 46.1%
male: 57.7%
female: 34.6% (1995 est.) |
| 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: |
transitional -
ruling military junta took power in 1989; government is
dominated by members of Sudan's National Islamic Front (NIF),
a fundamentalist political organization, which uses the
National Congress Party (NCP) as its legal front |
| Administrative
divisions: |
26 states (wilayat,
singular - wilayah); A'ali an Nil, Al Bahr al Ahmar, Al
Buhayrat, Al Jazirah, Al Khartum, Al Qadarif, Al Wahdah, An
Nil al Abyad, An Nil al Azraq, Ash Shamaliyah, Bahr al Jabal,
Gharb al Istiwa'iyah, Gharb Bahr al Ghazal, Gharb Darfur,
Gharb Kurdufan, Janub Darfur, Janub Kurdufan, Junqali,
Kassala, Nahr an Nil, Shamal Bahr al Ghazal, Shamal Darfur,
Shamal Kurdufan, Sharq al Istiwa'iyah, Sinnar, Warab |
| Independence: |
1 January 1956
(from Egypt and UK) |
| National
holiday: |
Independence Day,
1 January (1956) |
| Constitution: |
12 April 1973,
suspended following coup of 6 April 1985; interim
constitution of 10 October 1985 suspended following coup of
30 June 1989; new constitution implemented on 30 June 1998
partially suspended 12 December 1999 by President BASHIR |
| 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; some
separate religious courts; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction, with reservations |
| Suffrage: |
17 years of age;
universal, but noncompulsory |
| Executive
branch: |
chief of
state: President Lt. Gen. Umar Hasan Ahmad al-BASHIR
(since 16 October 1993); First Vice President Ali Uthman
Muhammad TAHA (since 17 February 1998), Second Vice
President Moses MACHAR (since 12 February 2001); note - the
president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Lt. Gen. Umar
Hasan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16 October 1993); First Vice
President Ali Uthman Muhammad TAHA (since 17 February 1998),
Second Vice President Moses MACHAR (since 12 February 2001);
note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the
president; note - the National Congress Party (front for the
National Islamic Front or NIF) dominates BASHIR's cabinet
elections: president elected by popular vote
for a five-year term; election last held 13-23 December 2000
(next to be held NA 2005)
election results: Umar Hasan Ahmad al-BASHIR
reelected president; percent of vote - Umar Hasan Ahmad al-BASHIR
86.5%, Ja'afar Muhammed NUMAYRI 9.6%, three other candidates
received less than a combined 4% of the vote
note: BASHIR assumed supreme executive power in
1989 and retained it through several transitional
governments in the early and mid-90s before being popularly
elected for the first time in March 1996 |
| Legislative
branch: |
unicameral
National Assembly (400 seats; 275 elected by popular vote,
125 elected by a supra assembly of interest groups known as
the National Congress)
elections: last held 13-23 December 2000 (next
to be held NA)
election results: NA; few parties participated
in the 2000 elections
note: on 12 December 1999, BASHIR dismissed the
National Assembly during an internal power struggle between
the president and speaker of the National Assembly Hasan al-TURABI |
| Judicial
branch: |
Supreme Court;
Special Revolutionary Courts |
| Political
parties and leaders: |
the government
allows political "associations" under a 1998 law
revised in 2000; to obtain government approval parties must
accept the constitution and refrain from advocating or using
violence against the regime; approved parties include the
National Congress Party or NCP [Ibrahim Ahmed UMAR], Popular
National Congress [Hassan al-TURABI], and a handful of minor
pro-government parties |
| Political
pressure groups and leaders: |
National Congress
Party [Ibrahim Ahmed UMAR] (front for the National Islamic
Front or NIF); Popular National Congress [Hassan al-TURABI];
Umma [Sadiq al-MAHDI]; Democratic Unionist Party [Muhammed
Uthman AL-MIRGHANI]; National Democratic Alliance [Muhammed
Uthman AL-MIRGHANI, chairman]; Sudan People's Liberation
Army [Dr. John GARANG] |
| International
organization participation: |
ABEDA, ACP, AfDB,
AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM,
OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNU,
UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
| Diplomatic
representation in the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Mahdi Ibrahim MAHAMMAD
(recalled to Khartoum in August 1998)
chancery: 2210 Massachusetts Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 338-8565
FAX: [1] (202) 667-2406 |
| Diplomatic
representation from the US: |
US officials at
the US Embassy in Khartoum were moved for security reasons
in February 1996 and have been relocated to the US Embassies
in Nairobi, Kenya, and Cairo, Egypt, from where they make
periodic visits to Khartoum; the US Embassy in Khartoum is
located on Sharia Abdul Latif Avenue; mailing address - P.
O. Box 699, Khartoum; APO AE 09829; telephone - [249] (11)
774611 or 774700; FAX - [249] (11) 774137; the US Embassy in
Nairobi, Kenya is located in the Interim Office Building on
Mombasa Road, Nairobi; mailing address - P. O. Box 30137,
Box 21A, Unit 64100, APO AE 09831; telephone - [254] (2)
751613; FAX - [254] (2) 743204; the US Embassy in Cairo,
Egypt is located at (North Gate) 8, Kamel El-Din Salah
Street, Garden City, Cairo; mailing address - Unit 64900,
APO AE 09839-4900; telephone - [20] (2) 3557371; FAX - [20]
(2) 3573200 |
| Flag
description: |
three equal
horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with a green
isosceles triangle based on the hoist side |
| Economy
- overview: |
Sudan is buffeted
by civil war, chronic instability, adverse weather, weak
world agricultural prices, a drop in remittances from
abroad, and counterproductive economic policies. The private
sector's main areas of activity are agriculture (which
employs 80% of the work force), trading, and light industry
which is mostly processing of agricultural goods. Most of
the 1990s were characterized by sluggish economic growth as
the IMF suspended lending, declared Sudan a non-cooperative
state, and threatened to expel Sudan from the IMF. Starting
in 1997, Sudan began implementing IMF macroeconomic reforms
which have successfully stabilized inflation at 10% or less.
Sudan continues to have limited international credit
resources as over 75% of Sudan's debt of $24.9 billion is in
arrears and Khartoum's continued prosecution of the civil
war works to isolate Sudan. In 1999, Sudan began exporting
oil and in 1999-2000 had recorded its first trade surpluses.
Current oil production stands at 185,000 barrels per day, of
which about 70% is exported and the rest refined for
domestic consumption. Despite its many infrastructure
problems, Sudan's increased oil production, the return of
regular rainfall, and recent investments in irrigation
schemes should allow the country to achieve economic growth
of 6% in 2001. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $35.7 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- real growth rate: |
7% (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) |
| GDP
- composition by sector: |
agriculture:
39%
industry: 17%
services: 44% (1998 est.) |
| Population
below poverty line: |
NA% |
| Household
income or consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%:
NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Inflation
rate (consumer prices): |
10% (2000 est.) |
| Labor
force: |
11 million (1996
est.) |
| Labor
force - by occupation: |
agriculture 80%,
industry and commerce 10%, government 6%, unemployed 4%
(1996 est.) |
| Unemployment
rate: |
4% (1996 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$1.2 billion
expenditures: $1.3 billion, including capital
expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
| Industries: |
cotton ginning,
textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap distilling,
shoes, petroleum refining, pharmaceuticals, armaments |
| Industrial
production growth rate: |
5% (1996 est.) |
| Electricity
- production: |
1.76 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- production by source: |
fossil fuel:
42.05%
hydro: 57.95%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999) |
| Electricity
- consumption: |
1.637 billion kWh
(1999) |
| Electricity
- exports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity
- imports: |
0 kWh (1999) |
| Agriculture
- products: |
cotton,
groundnuts (peanuts), sorghum, millet, wheat, gum arabic,
sugarcane, cassara, mangos, papaya, bananas, sweet potatoes,
sesame; sheep, livestock |
| Exports: |
$1.7 billion
(f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports
- commodities: |
oil and petroleum
products, cotton, sesame, livestock, groundnuts, gum arabic,
sugar |
| Exports
- partners: |
Saudi Arabia 16%,
Italy 10%, Germany 5%, France 3%, Thailand 3% (1999) |
| Imports: |
$1.2 billion
(f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports
- commodities: |
foodstuffs,
manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment,
medicines and chemicals, textiles |
| Imports
- partners: |
China 14.7%,
Libya 14.7%, Saudi Arabia 8.9%, UK 8.7%, France 6.7% (1999) |
| Debt
- external: |
$24.9 billion
(2000 est.) |
| Economic
aid - recipient: |
$187 million
(1997) |
| Currency: |
Sudanese dinar (SDD) |
| Exchange
rates: |
Sudanese dinars
per US dollar - 257.44 (January 2001), 257.12 (2000), 252.55
(1999), 200.80 (1998), 157.57 (1997), 125.08 (1996) |
| Fiscal
year: |
calendar year |
| Telephones
- main lines in use: |
400,000 (2000) |
| Telephones
- mobile cellular: |
20,000 (2000) |
| Telephone
system: |
general
assessment: large, well-equipped system by
regional standards and being upgraded; cellular
communications started in 1996 and have expanded
substantially
domestic: consists of microwave radio relay,
cable, radiotelephone communications, tropospheric scatter,
and a domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations
international: satellite earth stations - 1
Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 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
Service Providers (ISPs): |
1 (2000) |
| Internet
users: |
10,000 (2000) |
| Railways: |
total:
5,311 km
narrow gauge: 4,595 km 1.067-m gauge; 716 km
1.6096-m gauge plantation line
note: the main line linking Khartoum to Port
Sudan carries over two-thirds of Sudan's rail traffic |
| Highways: |
total:
11,900 km
paved: 4,320 km
unpaved: 7,580 km (1996) |
| Pipelines: |
refined products
815 km |
| Ports
and harbors: |
Juba, Khartoum,
Kusti, Malakal, Nimule, Port Sudan, Sawakin |
| Merchant
marine: |
total:
4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 38,093 GRT/49,727 DWT
ships by type: cargo 2, roll on/roll off 2
(2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with paved runways: |
total:
12
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
| Airports
- with unpaved runways: |
total:
49
1,524 to 2,437 m: 15
914 to 1,523 m: 25
under 914 m: 9 (2000 est.) |
| Military
branches: |
Army, Navy, Air
Force, Popular Defense Force Militia |
| Military
manpower - military age: |
18 years of age |
| Military
manpower - availability: |
males age
15-49: 8,436,732 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - fit for military service: |
males age
15-49: 5,194,862 (2001 est.) |
| Military
manpower - reaching military age annually: |
males:
398,294 (2001 est.) |
| Military
expenditures - dollar figure: |
$550 million
(FY98) |
| Military
expenditures - percent of GDP: |
NA% |
| Disputes
- international: |
administrative
boundary with Kenya does not coincide with international
boundary; Egypt asserts its claim to the "Hala'ib
Triangle," a barren area of 20,580 sq km under partial
Sudanese administration that is defined by an administrative
boundary which supersedes the treaty boundary of 1899 |
|
