Sudan (Nubia) is located in northeastern Africa with Khartoum as its capital city. The country borders Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, and Libya to the northwest.Once referred to as Anglo-Egyptian Sudan between 1899 and 1956, Sudan marked its independence in January 1956 after the United Kingdom and Egypt concluded an agreement providing for Sudanese self-government and self-determination.
Sudan has been part of two civil wars since its independence. The first was when the Sudanese government fought the Anyanya rebel army in 1955 to 1972. The Second Sudanese Civil War began in 1983 when the Sudan People’s Liberation Army/Movement.
Up until its separation from South Sudan in 2011, Sudan was the the largest country in Africa and the Arab world.Sudan is an independent sovereign state. Omar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir has been president since 1989. The country makes provision for two vice presidents. The first vice president is Bakri Hassan Saleh, while the second vice president is Hassabu Mohamed Abdalrahman. Both were appointed in 2013.
Sudan is administratively divided into 17 states ruled by elected governors. These include Khartoum, Gezira, North Kordofan, and South Darfur.Sudan is a member state of the United Nations (UN), the Arab League (AL), and the African Union (AU).Originally, Sudan’s president Omar al-Bashir declared there would be dual citizenship allowed between his country and South Sudan, but rescinded the offer after independence.
The country’s relations with South Sudan is complex.In Sudan, over 60 languages are spoken, which are mostly classified under the Nilo-Saharan family. Some of the languages are spoken in neighboring countries.
The languages with the most speakers are Nuer and Dinka. Bari and Zande also have a substantial number of speakers.The majority of the population is made up of Sunni Muslims, with a small number of Christian followers.
Sudanese culture is heavily influenced by the country’s neighbors due to so many of its citizens fleeing the country during the civil wars. There is a great focus on knowing one’s dialect and origin.Sudan’s climate has a rainy season with high humidity and a drier season, similar to equatorial climates. Most rain falls from May to October.
Sudan has a GDP per capita of $2,600, with a 3.9 percent growth rate. The employment rate stands at 20 percent.
Both South Sudan and Sudan share a 38 billion dollar external debt. A small portion of the debt is owed to international institutions. Foreign governments, including those in the Paris Club, own the majority of the debt. The two countries have yet to determine how to divide this debt.
Sudan’s health indicators are some of the world’s worst. Infant mortality rate is 52.86 deaths for every 1,000 live births. Life expectancy is at 63.32 years, with 61.27 years for males and 65.46 years for females.
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