The Republic of Sudan is the largest country in Africa
(967,500 square miles). It shares borders with Chad,
the Central
African Republic, the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Libya and Uganda.
The terrain is generally flat with mountains in the east and west. The capital is Kartoum and located at the confluence of the Blue and White Nile Rivers. The Sudanese are the most diverse on the African continent. The population is primarily Arab/Muslim in the north and black African/Christian and animist in the south. There has been no official census since 1993 because of civil wars, but estimates suggest the population at about 39 million.
Sudan gained its independence on January 1, 1956 from Egypt and the United Kingdom. Sudan has been at war with itself for most of its existence. The current conflict in the western region of Darfur has displaced nearly 2 million people. They currently have an authoritarian government run by President Omar al-Bashir. A Provisional Government was established by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in January 2005 which provides for power sharing pending national elections which are to occur no later than July 2009. The official religion is Islam and the official language Arabic.
80 percent of the work force is involved in agriculture. Most farms are rain-fed and therefore susceptible to drought. They have rich mineral resources, but currently very low output. Chronic instability, civil war and adverse weather have kept most of the population below the poverty line.
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