Sudan

• tropical in south;
• arid desert in north;
• rainy season varies by region (April to November)

• generally flat, featureless plain;
• mountains in far south, northeast and west;
• desert dominates the north

• inadequate supplies of potable water;
• wildlife populations threatened by excessive hunting;
• soil erosion;
• desertification;
• periodic drought

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

0-14 years:

43.7% (male 8,730,609; female 8,358,569)

15-64 years:

54.1% (male 10,588,634; female 10,571,199)

65 years and over:

2.3% (male 490,869; female 408,282) (2004 est.)

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:

1.2 male(s)/female

total population:

1.02 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

noun:

Sudanese (singular and plural)

adjective:

Sudanese

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

• authoritarian regime - ruling military junta took power in 1989;
• government is run by an alliance of the military and the National Congress Party (NCP), formerly the National Islamic Front (NIF), which espouses an Islamist platform

• 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

• 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

chief of state:

• President Field Marshall Umar Hassan 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 Field Marshall 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 or NCP (formerly the National Islamic Front or NIF) dominates al-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)

election results:

• Field Marshall 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 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: BASHIR assumed supreme executive power in 1989 and retained it through several transitional governments in the early and mid-1990s before being popularly elected for the first time in March 1996

• 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 or PNC [Hassan al-TURABI], and over 20 minor, pro-government parties

• Democratic Unionist Party [Muhammed Uthman AL-MIRGHANI];
• National Congress Party [Ibrahim Ahmed UMAR];
• National Democratic Alliance [Muhammed Uthman AL-MIRGHANI, chairman];
• Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army [Dr. John GARANG];
• Umma Party [Sadiq al-MAHDI]

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires, Ad Interim Khidir Haroun AHMED (since April 2001)

chancery:

2210 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 338-8565

FAX:

[1] (202) 667-2406

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Gerard M. GALLUCCI

embassy:

Sharia Abdul Latif Avenue, Khartoum

mailing address:

P. O. Box 699, Khartoum; APO AE 09829

telephone:

[249] (11) 774611 or 774700

FAX:

[249] (11) 774137

note: US Consul in Cairo is providing backup service for Khartoum (see http://usembassy.egnet.net/sudan.htm)

lowest 10%:

NA

highest 10%:

NA

total:

5,978 km

narrow gauge:

4,595 km 1.067-m gauge; 1,400 km .600-m gauge for cotton plantations (2003)

total:

11,900 km

paved:

4,320 km

unpaved:

7,580 km (1999 est.)

total:

3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 20,466 GRT/26,973 DWT

by type:

livestock carrier 1, roll on/roll off 2

registered in other countries:

4 (2004 est.)

• the north-south civil war has affected Sudan's neighbors by drawing them into the fighting and by forcing them to provide shelter to refugees, to contend with infiltration by rebel groups, and to serve as mediators;
• Sudan has provided shelter to Ugandan refugees and cover to Lord's Resistance Army soldiers;
• Sudan accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups;
• efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Ethiopia have been delayed by fighting in Sudan;
• Kenya's administrative boundary still extends into the Sudan, creating the "Ilemi Triangle";
• Egypt and Sudan retain claims to administer the triangular areas that extend north and south of the 1899 Treaty boundary along the 22nd Parallel, but have withdrawn their military presence;
• Egypt is economically developing and currently effectively administers the "Hala'ib Triangle" north of the Treaty Line;
• Sudan has pledged to work with the Central African Republic to stem violent skirmishes over water and grazing among related pastoral populations along the border

refugees (country of origin):

108,251 (Eritrea), 5,023 (Chad), 7,983 (Uganda)

IDPs:

4.367 million (internal conflict since 1980s; ongoing genocide) (2004)