South Sudan

South Sudan is a country in East Africa. Its official name is the Republic of South Sudan. It was part of Sudan until 2011. Just two years after South Sudan gained its independence, in 2013, a civil war began.

South Sudan is landlocked, meaning that no part of the country touches the ocean. The country is bordered by Ethiopia to the east; Kenya to the southeast; Uganda to the south; the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the southwest; the Central African Republic to the west; and the Republic of Sudan to the north. 

South Sudan includes the vast swamp region of the Sudd formed by the White Nile, locally called the Bahr al Jabal.

History
What is now South Sudan was once part of the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. This part of the British Empire became the Republic of Sudan when independence was achieved in 1956. 

After the First Sudanese Civil War, the Southern Sudan Autonomous Region was formed in 1972 and lasted until 1983. A second Sudanese civil war soon developed and ended with the Comprehensive Peace Agreement of 2005. Later that year, the Autonomous Government of Southern Sudan was formed. 

 Independence 
South Sudan became an independent state on 9 July 2011 at midnight local time,Broadcast of Declaration of Independence (part 1)Broadcast of Declaration of Independence (part 2) after a referendum held in January 2011. In the referendum, nearly 99% of voters wanted to separate from the rest of Sudan.

The United Nations Security Council met on 13 July 2011 to formally discuss admitting the Republic of South Sudan to the Security Council. The next day, 14 July 2011, South Sudan became a United Nations member state. 

South Sudan has also applied to join the Commonwealth of Nations, the East African Community, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank. The country was declared eligible to apply for membership in the Arab League as well.

At the 2012 Summer Olympics, one athlete from South Sudan competed under the flag of the International Olympic Committee."London 2012: Refugee runs for world, family walk 50km to watch,"  NDTV (New Delhi Television), 11 August 2012; retrieved 2012-8-16. 

In 2013 a civil war broke out.

 People 
According to estimates, in 2023 South Sudan's population was 11,483,374, and in 2024 it increased to 12,703,714.

South Sudan's population is fairly young overall. In 2023, around one out of every 5 people in South Sudan (22%) was between the ages of 0 and 14. Meanwhile, 3 out of 4 people (74%) were between the ages of 15 and 29. Fewer than four out of every hundred people (3.8%) were aged 65 or above.

As of 2025, life expectancy in Sudan was just 57.7 years. Only three countries in the world scored lower: Central African Republic, Nigeria, and Chad.

 Languages 
There are over 60 indigenous languages in South Sudan, along with English (the country's official language) and Arabic.

 Religion 
The main religion is Christianity, practised by nearly 78% of the population. Another 20% practise African traditional religions, and just 2% are Muslim.

 Economy 
Much of South Sudan's economy is based on oil, but they also have a large lumber industry mainly consisting of teak.  It is a very poor and under-developed country. There is very little infrastructure, and the civil wars have caused a lot of damage.

References


Category:2011 establishments in Africa
Category:Least developed countries
Category:English-speaking countries