Overview
Sudan is the largest country in Africa: 2.5 million square kilometres in total. Its landscape is diverse and varied with forests, deserts, mountains, plains and swamps. Sudan has large areas of cultivatable land and several large irrigation schemes. Sorghum grain is the staple food and the country exports cotton, gum arabic and simsim. Many communities are pastoralists and the pastoral lifestyle is an important factor in the politics of Sudan. The country has important oil reserves, with an average output of 300,000 barrels per day, limited gold reserves and a wide range of untapped mineral deposits.
Arabic is the official language of the country, and Islam the state religion. However, Sudan has a large non-Arabic speaking and non-Muslim population.
Civil war
After over 20 years of civil war, between the mostly Muslim north and the mainly non-Muslim south, the government and southern rebels entered negotiations. A comprehensive peace deal was signed in January 2005, which has stimulated development in the south.
Sudan today
As a result of the civil war, the country’s infrastructure is severely damaged. More violence erupted in the western region of Sudan, Darfur, which has resulted in thousands of deaths and a worsening humanitarian emergency.
The situation is being compounded by the large influx of refugees from neighbouring Ethiopia and Chad. In addition, poor transportation and lack of resources has hampered humanitarian assistance from reaching the people who need it.
Concern’s work in Sudan
Concern has taken a varied approach to working in Sudan and where possible it works in partnership with the local administration and local NGOs. Read more...
