Sudan

A country of northeast Africa south of Egypt. Northern Sudan formed part of the ancient kingdoms of Nubia and Cush. It was conquered by Egypt in 1820–1822 and jointly administered by Great Britain and Egypt after 1899, Sudan achieved independence in 1956. Khartoum is the capital and Omdurman the largest city. For centuries, the region that is now known as Sudan consisted of a number of independent nations.

Sudan has had a troubled relationship with many of its neighbors and much of the international community due to what is viewed as its aggressively Islamic stance. Sudan is the largest country in Africa. It borders nine countries – Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Chad, and Libya – and has a coastline on the Red Sea in the north-east.

Sudan has turned around a struggling economy with sound economic policies and infrastructure investments, but it still faces formidable economic problems, starting from its low level of per capita output. Agriculture production remains Sudan's most important sector, employing 80% of the work force and contributing 39% of GDP.

The population of Sudan is estimated about 39 million of which 60% are Muslim, 25 % are animist and 15% are Christian. Sudan has two distinct major cultures--Arabicized Black Africans and non-Arab Black Africans.