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For 22 years, Sudan has been entangled in two of Africa’s longest civil wars; the first, ending in 1972 and the second just recently in 2005. During the 1990’s, political instability and multiple economic sanctions left the Sudanese economy in total disarray. This was despite the country’s strategic geographical placing and added wealth in natural resources. Nevertheless, Sudan today, is quite the turnaround story.
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Sudan is now positioned as one of the 5 fastest growing economies in the world, with a 7% economic growth rate in 2005 and an estimated 8.6% growth rate in 2006. This remarkable economic transformation is in large part due to Sudan’s economic stabilization, and monetary policies adopted by the Sudanese Government reducing inflation rates down to 9% (est. 2005), leading Sudan into the registration of its first trade surplus in decades. This economic revival is also largely due to the sharp rise in oil exploration and export.
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Still, the Sudanese economy remains dominated by the agricultural sector, employing over 80% of the Sudanese population and contributing 39% of the country’s GDP; which in 2005 was estimated at 22.75 billion USD. Sudan’s main agricultural products include: cotton, groundnuts, sorghum, millet, gum Arabic, sesame, sheep and livestock amongst others.
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Sudan is the largest country in Africa, with an estimated area of 1 million square miles. Within this vast area air transport is unaffordable for most of the country’s population, waterways are deemed inaccessible for most of the year due to dryness and/or floods and railroad services remain outdated, with limited coverage at 5,978km.
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Sudan’s vast land space is serviced by an inadequate road service of only 11,900 km of road, of which only 4,320km is paved. Roads are mostly concentrated in Central Sudan; ongoing economic booms and Sudan’s ideal location geographically can only indicate a great and crucial need for further advancement of the country’s road system, to – for a start – provide access and coverage to all production centers, agricultural and otherwise. As an example a round trip drive from Sudan’s main port in the North-Eastern part of the country –Port Sudan to the Southern Sudanese capital of Juba is 7,000km.
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| Item/Year |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
| Population [in millions] |
31.1 |
31.9 |
32.7 |
33.6 |
34.4 |
35.3 |
36.2 |
| Real GDP Growth Rate |
8.3% |
6.1% |
6.5% |
6.0% |
7.2% |
8.0% |
8.0% |
| Per Capita in USD$ |
422 |
410 |
450 |
507 |
582 |
706 |
861 |
| Exchange Rate |
257.2 |
258 |
264 |
261 |
258 |
245 |
230 |
| General Price Inflation |
8.5% |
4.9% |
8.3% |
7.7% |
8.5% |
9.5% |
8.8% |
| Money Supply Growth Rate |
33.0% |
25.9% |
30.4% |
30.3% |
30.8% |
36.0% |
30.0% |
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