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- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- Geography
-
-
- Location:
- Northern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea
- Map references:
- Africa
- Area:
- total area:
- 2,505,810 sq km
- land area:
- 2.376 million sq km
- comparative area:
- slightly more than one-quarter the size of the US
- Land boundaries:
- total 7,687 km, Central African Republic 1,165 km, Chad 1,360 km, Egypt
- 1,273 km, Eritrea 605 km, Ethiopia 1,606 km, Kenya 232 km, Libya 383 km,
- Uganda 435 km, Zaire 628 km
- Coastline:
- 853 km
- Maritime claims:
- contiguous zone:
- 18 nm
- continental shelf:
- 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
- territorial sea:
- 12 nm
- International disputes:
- administrative boundary with Kenya does not coincide with international
- boundary; administrative boundary with Egypt does not coincide with
- international boundary creating the "Hala'ib Triangle," a barren area of
- 20,580 sq km, tensions over this disputed area began to escalate in 1992 and
- remain high
- Climate:
- tropical in south; arid desert in north; rainy season (April to October)
- Terrain:
- generally flat, featureless plain; mountains in east and west
- Natural resources:
- small reserves of petroleum, iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc, tungsten,
- mica, silver, gold
- Land use:
- arable land:
- 5%
- permanent crops:
- 0%
- meadows and pastures:
- 24%
- forest and woodland:
- 20%
- other:
- 51%
- Irrigated land:
- 18,900 sq km (1989 est.)
- Environment:
- current issues:
- inadequate supplies of potable water; wildlife populations threatened by
- excessive hunting; soil erosion; desertification
- natural hazards:
- dust storms
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- Geography
- international agreements:
- party to - Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test
- Ban, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity,
- Desertification
- Note:
- largest country in Africa; dominated by the Nile and its tributaries
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- People
-
-
- Population:
- 30,120,420 (July 1995 est.)
- Age structure:
- 0-14 years:
- 46% (female 6,801,001; male 7,124,892)
- 15-64 years:
- 52% (female 7,706,864; male 7,830,980)
- 65 years and over:
- 2% (female 280,297; male 376,386) (July 1995 est.)
- Population growth rate:
- 2.35% (1995 est.)
- Birth rate:
- 41.29 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
- Death rate:
- 11.74 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
- Net migration rate:
- NA migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
- note:
- the flow of refugees from the civil war in Sudan into neighboring countries
- continues, often at the rate of tens of thousands annually; Uganda was the
- main recipient of Sudanese refugees in the past year; repatriation of
- Eritrean and Ethiopean refugees in Sudan continues
- Infant mortality rate:
- 77.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
- Life expectancy at birth:
- total population:
- 54.71 years
- male:
- 53.81 years
- female:
- 55.65 years (1995 est.)
- Total fertility rate:
- 6 children born/woman (1995 est.)
- Nationality:
- noun:
- Sudanese (singular and plural)
- adjective:
- Sudanese
- Ethnic divisions:
- 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:
- age 15 and over can read and write (1983)
- total population:
- 32%
- male:
- 44%
- female:
- 21%
- Labor force:
- 6.5 million
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- People
- by occupation:
- agriculture 80%, industry and commerce 10%, government 6%
- note:
- labor shortages for almost all categories of skilled employment (1983 est.)
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- Government
-
-
- Names:
- 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
- Digraph:
- SU
- Type:
- ruling military junta - Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) - dissolved on
- 16 October 1993 and government civilianized
- Capital:
- Khartoum
- Administrative divisions:
- 9 states (wilayat, singular - wilayat or wilayah*); A'ali an Nil, Al Wusta*,
- Al Istiwa'iyah*, Al Khartum, Ash Shamaliyah*, Ash Sharqiyah*, Bahr al
- Ghazal, Darfur, Kurdufan
- note:
- on 14 February 1994, the 9 states comprising Sudan were divided into 26 new
- states; the new state boundary alignments are undetermined
- 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
- 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; the council is still studying criminal provisions under Islamic law;
- 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:
- none
- Executive branch:
- Chief of State and Head of Government:
- President Lt. General Umar Hasan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16 October 1993);
- prior to 16 October 1993, BASHIR served concurrently as Chief of State,
- Chairman of the RCC, Prime Minister, and Minister of Defence (since 30 June
- 1989); First Vice President Major General al-Zubayr Muhammad SALIH (since
- 19 October 1993); Second Vice President (Police) Maj. General George KONGOR
- (since NA February 1994); note - upon its dissolution on 16 October 1993,
- the RCC's executive and legislative powers were devolved to the President
- and the Transitional National Assembly (TNA), Sudan's appointed legislative
- body
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- Government
- cabinet:
- Cabinet; appointed by the president; note - on 30 October 1993, President
- BASHIR announced a new, predominantly civilian cabinet, consisting of 20
- federal ministers, most of whom retained their previous cabinet positions;
- on 9 February 1995, he abolished three ministries and redivided their
- portfolios to create several new ministries; these changes increased
- National Islamic Front presence at the ministerial level and consolidated
- its control over the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; President BASHIR's
- government is dominated by members of Sudan's National Islamic Front, a
- fundamentalist political organization formed from the Muslim Brotherhood in
- 1986; front leader Hasan al-TURABI controls Khartoum's overall domestic and
- foreign policies
- Legislative branch:
- appointed 300-member Transitional National Assembly; officially assumes all
- legislative authority for Sudan until the proposed 1995 resumption of
- national elections
- Judicial branch:
- Supreme Court, Special Revolutionary Courts
- Political parties and leaders:
- none; banned following 30 June 1989 coup
- Other political or pressure groups:
- National Islamic Front, Hasan al-TURABI
- Member of:
- ABEDA, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
- ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IGADD, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
- IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNU, UPU,
- WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
- Diplomatic representation in US:
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Ahmad SULAYMAN
- chancery:
- 2210 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
- telephone:
- [1] (202) 338-8565 through 8570
- FAX:
- [1] (202) 667-2406
- US diplomatic representation:
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Donald K. PETTERSON
- embassy:
- Shar'ia Ali Abdul Latif, Khartoum
- mailing address:
- P. O. Box 699, Khartoum; APO AE 09829
- telephone:
- 74700, 74611 (operator assistance required)
- FAX:
- Telex 22619 AMEMSD
- Flag:
- three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with a green
- isosceles triangle based on the hoist side
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- Economy
-
-
- Overview:
- Sudan is buffeted by civil war, chronic political instability, adverse
- weather, high inflation, a drop in remittances from abroad, and
- counterproductive economic policies. Governmental entities account for more
- than 70% of new investment. The private sector's main areas of activity are
- agriculture and trading, with most private industrial investment predating
- 1980. Agriculture employs 80% of the work force. Industry mainly processes
- agricultural items. Sluggish economic performance over the past decade,
- attributable largely to declining annual rainfall, has reduced levels of per
- capita income and consumption. A large foreign debt and huge arrearages
- continue to cause difficulties. In 1990 the International Monetary Fund took
- the unusual step of declaring Sudan noncooperative because of its nonpayment
- of arrearages to the Fund. After Sudan backtracked on promised reforms in
- 1992-93, the IMF threatened to expel Sudan from the Fund. To avoid
- expulsion, Khartoum agreed to make payments on its arrears to the Fund,
- liberalize exchange rates, and reduce subsidies. These measures have been
- partially implemented. The government's continued prosecution of the civil
- war and its growing international isolation led to a further deterioration
- of the nonagricultural sectors of the economy during 1994. Agriculture, on
- the other hand, after several disappointing years, enjoyed a bumper fall
- harvest in 1994; its strong performance produced an overall growth rate in
- GDP of perhaps 7%.
- National product:
- GDP - purchasing power parity - $23.7 billion (1994 est.)
- National product real growth rate:
- 7% (1994 est.)
- National product per capita:
- $870 (1994 est.)
- Inflation rate (consumer prices):
- 112% (FY93/94 est.)
- Unemployment rate:
- 30% (FY92/93 est.)
- Budget:
- revenues:
- $493 million
- expenditures:
- $1.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $225 million (1994 est.)
- Exports:
- $419 million (f.o.b., FY93/94)
- commodities:
- gum arabic 29%, livestock/meat 24%, cotton 13%, sesame, peanuts
- partners:
- Western Europe 46%, Saudi Arabia 14%, Eastern Europe 9%, Japan 9%, US 3%
- (FY87/88)
- Imports:
- $1.7 billion (c.i.f., FY93/94)
- commodities:
- foodstuffs, petroleum products, manufactured goods, machinery and equipment,
- medicines and chemicals, textiles
- partners:
- Western Europe 32%, Africa and Asia 15%, US 13%, Eastern Europe 3% (FY87/88)
- External debt:
- $17 billion (June 1993 est.)
- Industrial production:
- growth rate 6.8% (FY92/93 est.); accounts for 11% of GDP
- Electricity:
- capacity:
- 500,000 kW
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- Economy
- production:
- 1.3 billion kWh
- consumption per capita:
- 42 kWh (1993)
- Industries:
- cotton ginning, textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap distilling,
- shoes, petroleum refining
- Agriculture:
- accounts for 35% of GDP; major products - cotton, oilseeds, sorghum, millet,
- wheat, gum arabic, sheep; marginally self-sufficient in most foods
- Economic aid:
- recipient:
- US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $1.5 billion; Western (non-US)
- countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $5.1 billion; OPEC
- bilateral aid (1979-89), $3.1 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $588
- million
- Currency:
- 1 Sudanese pound (#Sd) = 100 piastres
- Exchange rates:
- official rate - Sudanese pounds (#Sd) per US$1 - 434.8 (January 1995), 277.8
- (1994), 153.8 (1993), 69.4 (1992), 5.4288 (1991), 4.5004 (1990); note - the
- commercial rate is 300 Sudanese pounds per US$1
- Fiscal year:
- 1 July - 30 June
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- Transportation
-
-
- Railroads:
- total:
- 5,516 km
- narrow gauge:
- 4,800 km 1.067-m gauge; 716 km 1.6096-m gauge plantation line
- Highways:
- total:
- 20,703 km
- paved:
- bituminous treated 2,000 km
- unpaved:
- gravel 4,000 km; improved earth 2,304 km; unimproved earth 12,399 km
- Inland waterways:
- 5,310 km navigable
- Pipelines:
- refined products 815 km
- Ports:
- Juba, Khartoum, Kusti, Malakal, Nimule, Port Sudan, Sawakin
- Merchant marine:
- total:
- 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 43,024 GRT/122,379 DWT
- ships by type:
- cargo 3, roll-on/roll-off cargo 2
- Airports:
- total:
- 70
- with paved runways over 3,047 m:
- 1
- with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m:
- 5
- with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m:
- 3
- with paved runways under 914 m:
- 13
- with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m:
- 1
- with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m:
- 14
- with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m:
- 33
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- Communications
-
-
- Telephone system:
- NA telephones; large, well-equipped system by African standards, but barely
- adequate and poorly maintained by modern standards
- local:
- NA
- intercity:
- consists of microwave radio relay, cable, radio communications,
- troposcatter, and a domestic satellite system with 14 stations
- international:
- 1 INTELSAT (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 ARABSAT earth station
- Radio:
- broadcast stations:
- AM 11, FM 0, shortwave 0
- radios:
- NA
- Television:
- broadcast stations:
- 3
- televisions:
- NA
- THE WORLD FACTBOOK
- Sudan
- Defense Forces
-
-
- Branches:
- Army, Navy, Air Force, Popular Defense Force Militia
- Manpower availability:
- males age 15-49 6,806,588; males fit for military service 4,185,206; males
- reach military age (18) annually 313,958 (1995 est.)
- Defense expenditures:
- exchange rate conversion - $600 million, 7.3% of GDP (FY93/94 est.)
-