About South Sudan

History

Sudan had been one of the largest countries in Africa. As Sudan prepared to gain independence from joint British and Egyptian rule in 1956, southern leaders accused the new authorities in Khartoum of backing out of promises to create a federal system, and of trying to impose an Islamic and Arabic identity.

In 1955, southern army officers mutinied, sparking off a civil war between the south, led by the Anya Nya guerrilla movement, and the Sudanese government. The conflict only ended when the Addis Ababa peace agreement of 1972 accorded the South a measure of autonomy. Over 1.5 million South Sudanese were killed or died from war related causes.

But, in 1983, the South, led by the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) and its armed wing, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA), again rose in rebellion when the Sudanese government cancelled the autonomy arrangements.

Over 3.5 million people lost their lives from war and war related causes and more than four million were displaced in the ensuing 22 years of guerrilla warfare. Large numbers of South Sudanese fled the fighting, either to the North (not by choice) or to neighboring countries, Europe, United States, Canada and Australia, where many remained today.

The good news is on January 9^th, 2005, a Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) was signed in Kenya after 21 years of turmoil between South Sudanese and Northern Sudanese. The CPA ended Africa’s longest-running civil war. On July 9, 2011 South Sudan gained independence from Sudan.

Formed from the 10 southern-most states of Sudan, South Sudan is a land of expansive grassland, swamps and tropical rain forest straddling both banks of the White Nile. Unlike the predominantly Muslim population of Sudan, the South Sudanese follow traditional religions, while minorities are Christians.

Timelines

Facts and Figures

Area: 644,329 sq km, 42^nd in the world, slightly smaller than Texas, landlocked

Climate: hot with seasonal rainfall influenced by the annual shift of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone. Rainfall is heaviest in the upland areas of the south and diminishes to the north

Terrain: the terrain gradually rises from plains in the north and center to southern highlands along the border with Uganda and Kenya; the White Nile, flowing north out of the uplands of Central Africa, is the major geographic feature of the country supporting agriculture and extensive wild animal populations; The Sudd (a name derived from floating vegetation that hinders navigation) is a large swampy area of more than 100,000 sq km fed by the waters of the White Nile that dominates the center of the country

Natural Resources: hydropower, fertile agricultural land, gold, diamonds, petroleum, hardwoods, limestone, iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc, tungsten, mica, silver Ethnic Groups: Dinka, Kakwa, Bari, Azande, Shilluk, Kuku, Murle, Mandari, Didinga, Ndogo, Bviri, Lndi, Anuak, Bongo, Lango, Dungotona, Acholi

Language: English and Arabic are official; regional languages include Dinka, Nuer, Bari, Zande, Shilluk

Religion: Christian, animist

Population: 8 to 12 million, 92^nd largest in the world, 22% live in urban areas where Juba (the capital) has ~350,000

Governance: 10 states; Central Equatoria, Eastern Equatoria, Jonglei, Lakes, Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Unity, Upper Nile, Warrap, Western Bahr el Ghazal, Western Equatoria

Major Infectious diseases: risk very high: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever, malaria, dengue fever, African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness) schistosomiasis, meningococcal meningitis, HIV/AIDS adult prevalence rate: 3.1% (24^th in the world)

Literacy: 27^% (40%male/16% female)

Agriculture – products: sorghum, maize, rice, millet, wheat, gum arabic, sugarcane, mangoes, papayas, bananas, sweet potatoes sunflower, cotton, sesame, cassava, beans, peanuts; cattle, sheep

Economy – overview: Industry and infrastructure in South Sudan are severely underdeveloped and poverty is widespread, following several decades of civil war. Subsistence agriculture provides a living for the vast majority of the population. Property rights are tentative and price signals are missing because markets are not well organized. South Sudan has little infrastructure – just 60 km of paved roads. Electricity is produced mostly by costly diesel generators and running water is scarce. South Sudan depends largely on imports of goods, services, and capital from the north. Despite these disadvantages, South Sudan does have abundant natural resources. South Sudan produces nearly three-fourths of the former Sudan’s total oil output of nearly a half million barrels per day. The government of South Sudan derives nearly 98% of its budget revenues from oil. South Sudan also holds one of the richest agricultural areas in Africa in the White Nile valley, which has very fertile soils and more-than-adequate water supplies. Currently the region supports 10-20 million head of cattle. South Sudan also contains large wildlife herds. And the White Nile has sufficient flow to generate large quantities of hydroelectricity.