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 2008 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.

Geographic coordinates: 15 00 N 30 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 2,505,810 km²
Land: 2.376 million km²
Water: 129,810 km²
Comparative: slightly more than one-quarter the size of the US

Land boundaries
Total: 7,687 km
Border countries: (9) 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
Extremes 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: 6.78%
Permanent crops: 0.17%
Other: 93.05% (2005)

Irrigated land: 18,630 km² (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 154 km³ (1997)

Natural hazards: dust storms and periodic persistent droughts

Geography
Note: largest country in Africa; dominated by the Nile and its tributaries

Population: 40,218,456 (July 2008 est.)
Growth rate: 2.134% (2008 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Sudanese (singular and plural)
Adjective: Sudanese

Ethnic groups: black 52% Arab 39% Beja 6% foreigners 2% other 1%

Languages
Note: program of 'Arabization' in process

Religions: Sunni Muslim 70% (in north) Christian 5% (mostly in south and Khartoum) indigenous beliefs 25%

Age structure
0-14 years: 41.1% (male 8,451,576/female 8,093,609)
15-64 years: 56.4% (male 11,407,233/female 11,275,685)
65 years and over: 2.5% (male 518,822/female 471,530) (2008 est.)

Median age
Total: 18.9 years
Male: 18.7 years
Female: 19.1 years (2008 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.134% (2008 est.)

Birth rate: 34.31 births/1000 population (2008 est.)

Death rate: 13.64 deaths/1000 population (2008 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.67 migrant(s)/1000 population (2008 est.)

Environment
Current issues: inadequate supplies of potable water; wildlife populations threatened by excessive hunting; soil erosion; desertification; periodic drought
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.04 male/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male/female
65 years and over: 1.1 male/female
Total population: 1.03 male/female (2008 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 86.98 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 87.09 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 86.86 deaths/1000 live births (2008 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 50.28 years
Male: 49.38 years
Female: 51.23 years (2008 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4.58 children born/woman (2008 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 2.3% (2001 est.)
People living with hivaids: 400,000 (2001 est.)
Deaths: 23,000 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: very high
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness)
Water contact disease: schistosomiasis
Respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis
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 (2008)

Education expenditures: 6% of GDP (1991)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 61.1%
Male: 71.8%
Female: 50.5% (2003 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: 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 Jabal) 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 (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 UK)

National holiday: Independence Day 1 January (1956)

Constitution: constitution implemented on 30 June 1998 partially suspended 12 December 1999 by President BASHIR; under the CPA Interim National Constitution ratified 5 July 2005; Constitution of Southern Sudan 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 no later than July 2009 under terms of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement
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
Elections: last held 13-22 December 2000 (next to be held 2009)
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 Mayardit KIIR]; and elements of the National Democratic Alliance or NDA including factions of the Democratic Union Party [Muhammad Uthman al-MIRGHANI] and Umma Party [SADIQ Siddiq al-Mahdi]; note - all political parties listed above in the Government of National Unity

International organization participation: ABEDA ACP AfDB AFESD AMF AU CAEU COMESA FAO G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICCt (signatory) 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 Akec KHOC Aciew Khoc
In the us chancery: 2,210 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 338-8,565
In the us fax: [1] (202) 667-2,406
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Alberto M. FERNANDEZ
From the us embassy: Sharia Ali Abdul Latif Street, Khartoum
From the us mailing address: P. O. Box 699, Khartoum; APO AE 9,829
From the us telephone: [249] (183) 774,701/2/3
From the us fax: [249] (183) 774,137

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's economy is booming 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.

Real gdp purchasing power parity: $80.98 billion (2007 est.)

Real gdp growth rate: 10.2% (2007 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $1900 (2007 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 32%
Industry: 32.8%
Services: 35.2% (2007 est.)

Agriculture products: cotton groundnuts (peanuts) sorghum millet wheat gum arabic sugarcane cassava (tapioca) mangos papaya bananas sweet potatoes sesame; sheep 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: 22% (2007 est.)

Labor force: 7.415 million (1996 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 80%
By occupation industry: 7%
By occupation services: 13% (1998 est.)

Unemployment rate: 18.7% (2002 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Budget
Revenues: $9.201 billion
Expenditures: $10.62 billion (2007 est.)

Public debt: 105.9% of GDP (2007 est.)

Inflation rate consumer prices: 8% (2007 est.)

Stock of domestic credit: $8.659 billion (31 December 2007)

Market value of publicly traded shares: $NA

Current account balance: -$3.447 billion (2007 est.)

Exports: $8.879 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Commodities: oil and petroleum products; cotton sesame livestock groundnuts gum arabic sugar
Partners: China 82.1% Japan 8.4% UAE 2.5% (2007)

Imports: $7.722 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Commodities: foodstuffs manufactured goods refinery and transport equipment medicines and chemicals textiles wheat
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: $1.378 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Debt external: $29.42 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Exchange rates
Note: in October 2007 Sudan redenominated its currency by transforming 100 units of Sudanese dinar into one unit of Sudanese pound

Electricity
Production: 4.037 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Consumption: 3.398 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Exports: 0 kWh (2007 est.)
Imports: 0 kWh (2007 est.)

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2007 est.)
Consumption: 0 m³ (2007 est.)
Exports: 0 m³ (2007 est.)
Imports: 0 m³ (2007 est.)
Proven reserves: 84.95 billion m³ (1 January 2008 est.)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 345,200 (2007)
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
Domestic: consists of microwave radio relay, cable, 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)

Internet
Country code: .sd
Hosts: 33 (2008)
Users: 1.5 million (2007)

Military expenditures: 3% of GDP (2005 est.)

Military service age and obligation: 18-30 years of age for compulsory military service; 2-year service obligation (2006)

Airports: 101 (2007)
With paved runways total: 16
With paved runways over 3047 m: 2
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 9
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 4
With paved runways under 914 m: 1 (2007)
With unpaved runways total: 85
With unpaved runways over 3047 m: 1
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 20
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 37
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 27 (2007)

Heliports: 4 (2007)

Pipelines: gas 156 km; oil 4,070 km; refined products 1613 km (2007)

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 (1723 km open year round on White and Blue Nile rivers) (2006)

Merchant marine
Total: 3
By type: cargo 2, carrier 1 (2008)

Ports and terminals: Port 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)