Official name: Republic of Sudan
Area: 1,886,068 km²
Residents: 42.81 million (2019, World Bank)
Growth of population: 2.69% per year (2020, estimated)
Seat of government: Khartoum
Official languages: Arabic, English
Regional languages: Bedawi, Fur, Masalit et al
Bilad as-Sudan – the “land of the blacks” – is based on this Arabic name from the Middle Ages, actually referring to the Christianized Nubian empires on both sides of today’s Egyptian-Sudanese border, the current names of the states of Sudan and South Sudan.
Basic data
In the current report of the UN Development Program (UNDP) on human development (HDR) from 2020, Sudan ranks 170th out of 189 nations examined, with a mostly downward trend (Human Development Index for 2019).
The Federal Foreign Office, for example, provides general basic information about the country, while data and figures on extensive Subject areas are available from the World Bank, the German Federal Statistical Office and the UN Statistical Department or the CIA’s World Factbook. The Munzinger country profile for Sudan offers comprehensive information with the latest data from multilateral actors on topics such as population, politics, social affairs / education and economy.
On the Sudanese side, the Sudan Central Bureau of Statistics provides information on numerous topics.
Natural space
According to a2zgov, the Sudan is marked by the large basin landscape of the Nile, which is penetrated single mountains. The White and Blue Niles unite in Khartoum. The confluence is referred to as “the longest kiss in history” by Arab poets. The Nile basin is bounded in the east by the Ethiopian highlands and further in the northeast by the mountains of the Jibal al-Bahr al-Ahmar on the Red Sea, with an altitude of over 2200 m. In the west, the Darfur Mountains, with the Jebel Marra (3,088 m) as the highest mountain in Sudan, form the boundary to the Chad Basin. In the central south of the country, the rise Nuba Mountains on to m to 1325.
The vegetation zones of the country are characterized, from north to south, by the gradual transition of the Sahara on both sides of the Nile to the various savannah forms of the Sahel zone. The Sahara of Sudan is part of the Libyan Desert west of the Nile, while the region east of the Nile, which rises slightly towards the Red Sea, is known as the Nubian Desert. The Nubian Desert does not have any oases. More than 50% of the country consists of deserts and 10% has trees, while 13% of the area is used for agriculture.
In order to protect the great diversity of its natural units, with a large number of threatened mammal species, a rich bird life and its maritime uniqueness in the Red Sea, Sudan has designated 30 protected areas, most of which only exist on paper. The nature has in Sudan’s policy a low priority and a larger number of protected areas also suffers still from the effects of decades of civil war, as in the already desolate years of economic situation in the country.
The two Sudanese marine national parks were spared the effects of the civil war Sanganeb Atoll and Dungonab Bay / Mukkawar Island, which were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in July 2016. These national parks with their abundant fauna of marine mammals, sea birds, fish (especially sharks), manta rays and turtles and in the bay of Dungonab with one of the world’s largest populations of dugongs, a rare species of manatee, protect valuable coral reefs with seagrass beds and mangroves.
Otherwise exist only for the also on the proposed list of UNESCO World Heritage standing Dinder National Park on the border with Ethiopia, the one with the Ethiopian Alatish National Park forms a common ecosystem, a management plan that is implemented in larger parts.
Even after the secession of South Sudan, and the associated immense loss of three quarters of its oil fields, Sudan remains a country rich in natural resources. In addition to crude oil, mainly in the regions of South Darfur and South Kordofan close to the border with South Sudan, with the conflict-laden Abyei area, there are also other significant mineral resources in Sudan, the deposits of which have only just begun to be developed. Gold mining is traditionally based in the Nubian Desert. In an effort to diversify the extraction of its natural resources, Sudan has issued new gold prospecting licenses in recent years, primarily for North Kordofan and regions in the Sudanese border region with Ethiopia. Iron, copper and other industrial ores are also of importance. Little is known that uranium was also found in Sudan.
The flag
The Sudanese flag is divided into three equal horizontal stripes red, white and black, with a green triangle on the elevator. Red stands for the struggle of the martyrs in Sudan and in the Arab world. White stands for peace, optimism, light and love. Black symbolizes Sudan and the Mahdi Revolution, in which black flags were the identification mark. Green symbolizes Islamic prosperity and agriculture. The flag reflects the pan-Arab colors that first stood for Syria in 1920 and were adopted by Sudan in May 1970.
