1992 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1992 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
tropical in south; arid desert in north; rainy season (April to October)
Coastline
853 km
Comparative area
slightly more than one-quarter the size of the US
Contiguous zone
18 nm
Continental shelf
200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation
Disputes
administrative boundary with Kenya does not coincide with international boundary; administrative boundary with Egypt does not coincide with international boundary
Environment
dominated by the Nile and its tributaries; dust storms; desertification
Land area
2,376,000 km2
Land boundaries
7,697 km total; Central African Republic 1,165 km, Chad 1,360 km, Egypt 1,273 km, Ethiopia 2,221 km, Kenya 232 km, Libya 383 km, Uganda 435 km, Zaire 628 km
Land use
arable land 5%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and pastures 24%; forest and woodland 20%; other 51%; includes irrigated 1%
Natural resources
small reserves of crude oil, iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc, tungsten, mica, silver, crude oil
Note
largest country in Africa
Terrain
generally flat, featureless plain; mountains in east and west
Territorial sea
12 nm
Total area
2,505,810 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
44 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate
13 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Ethnic divisions
black 52%, Arab 39%, Beja 6%, foreigners 2%, other 1%
Infant mortality rate
83 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Labor force
6,500,000; agriculture 80%, industry and commerce 10%, government 6%; labor shortages for almost all categories of skilled employment (1983 est.); 52% of population of working age (1985)
Languages
Arabic (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, diverse dialects of Nilotic, Nilo-Hamitic, and Sudanic languages, English; program of Arabization in process
Life expectancy at birth
53 years male, 54 years female (1992)
Literacy
27% (male 43%, female 12%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Nationality
noun - Sudanese (singular and plural); adjective - Sudanese
Net migration rate
NEGL migrants/1,000 population (1992)
Organized labor
trade unions suspended following 30 June 1989 coup; now in process of being legalized anew
Population
28,305,046 (July 1992), growth rate 3.1% (1992)
Religions
Sunni Muslim (in north) 70%, indigenous beliefs 20%, Christian (mostly in south and Khartoum) 5%
Total fertility rate
6.3 children born/woman (1992)
Government
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
Capital
Khartoum
Chief of State and Head of Government
Revolutionary Command Council Chairman and Prime Minister Lt. Gen. Umar Hasan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 30 June 1989); Deputy Chairman of the Command Council and Deputy Prime Minister Maj. Gen. al-Zubayr Muhammad SALIH Ahmed (since 9 July 1989)
Constitution
12 April 1973, suspended following coup of 6 April 1985; interim constitution of 10 October 1985 suspended following coup of 30 June 1989
Diplomatic representation
Ambassador `Abdallah Ahmad `ABDALLAH; Chancery at 2210 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone (202) 338-8565 through 8570; there is a Sudanese Consulate General in New York
Elections
none
Executive branch
executive and legislative authority vested in a 12-member Revolutionary Command Council (RCC); chairman of the RCC acts as prime minister; in July 1989, RCC appointed a predominately civilian 22-member cabinet to function as advisers
Flag
three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with a green isosceles triangle based on the hoist side
Independence
1 January 1956 (from Egypt and UK; formerly Anglo-Egyptian Sudan)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court, Special Revolutionary Courts
Legal system
based on English common law and Islamic law; as of 20 January 1991, the Revolutionary Command Council imposed Islamic law in the six northern states of Al Wusta, Al Khartum, Ash Shamaliyah, Ash Sharqiyah, Darfur, and Kurdufan; the council is still studying criminal provisions under Islamic law; Islamic law will apply to all residents of the six northern states regardless of their religion; some separate religious courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch
appointed 300-member Transitional National Assembly; note - as announced 1 January 1992 by RCC Chairman BASHIR, the Assembly assumes all legislative authority for Sudan until the eventual, unspecified resumption of national elections
Long-form name
Republic of the Sudan
Member of
ABEDA, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IGADD, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
National holiday
Independence Day, 1 January (1956)
Political parties and leaders
none; banned following 30 June 1989 coup
Suffrage
none
Type
military; civilian government suspended and martial law imposed after 30 June 1989 coup
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for 35% of GDP and 80% of labor force; water shortages; two-thirds of land area suitable for raising crops and livestock; major products - cotton, oilseeds, sorghum, millet, wheat, gum arabic, sheep; marginally self-sufficient in most foods
Budget
revenues $1.3 billion; expenditures $2.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $505 million (FY91 est.)
Currency
Sudanese pound (plural - pounds); 1 Sudanese pound (#Sd) = 100 piasters
Economic aid
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
Electricity
610,000 kW capacity; 905 million kWh produced, 40 kWh per capita (1991)
Exchange rates
official rate - Sudanese pounds (#Sd) per US$1 - 90.1 (March 1992), 5.4288 (1991), 4.5004 (fixed rate since 1987), 2.8121 (1987); note - free market rate 83 (December 1991)
Exports
$325 million (f.o.b., FY91 est.) commodities: cotton 52%, sesame, gum arabic, peanuts partners: Western Europe 46%, Saudi Arabia 14%, Eastern Europe 9%, Japan 9%, US 3% (FY88)
External debt
$14.6 billion (June 1991 est.)
Fiscal year
1 July - 30 June
GDP
exchange rate conversion - $12.1 billion, per capita $450; real growth rate 0% (FY91 est.)
Imports
$1.40 billion (c.i.f., FY91 est.) 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% (FY88)
Industrial production
growth rate NA%; accounts for 11% of GDP (FY89)
Industries
cotton ginning, textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap distilling, shoes, petroleum refining
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
95% (FY91 est.)
Overview
Sudan is buffeted by civil war, chronic political instability, adverse weather, high inflation, and counterproductive economic policies. The economy is dominated by governmental entities that 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. The economy's base is agriculture, which 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 high 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. Despite subsequent government efforts to implement reforms urged by the IMF and the World Bank, the economy remained stagnant in FY91 as entrepreneurs lack the incentive to take economic risks.
Unemployment rate
15% (FY91 est.)
Communications
Airports
72 total, 57 usable; 8 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 5 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 31 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
18 major transport aircraft
Highways
20,000 km total; 1,600 km bituminous treated, 3,700 km gravel, 2,301 km improved earth, 12,399 km unimproved earth and track
Inland waterways
5,310 km navigable
Merchant marine
5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 42,277 GRT/59,588 DWT; includes 3 cargo, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo
Pipelines
refined products 815 km
Ports
Port Sudan, Swakin
Railroads
5,500 km total; 4,784 km 1.067-meter gauge, 716 km 1.6096-meter-gauge plantation line
Telecommunications
large, well-equipped system by African standards, but barely adequate and poorly maintained by modern standards; consists of microwave, cable, radio communications, and troposcatter; domestic satellite system with 14 stations; broadcast stations - 11 AM, 3 TV; satellite earth stations - 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 ARABSAT
Military and Security
Branches
Army, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Force
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $610 million, 7.2% of GDP (1989 est.)
Manpower availability
males 15-49, 6,432,270; 3,949,518 fit for military service; 302,696 reach military age (18) annually