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Quick Facts | |
Capital | Khartoum |
Government | Authoritarian regime |
Currency | Sudanese Pound (SDG) |
Area | total: 2,505,810 km2 water: 129,810 km2 land: 2.376 million km2 |
Population | 37,090,298 (July 2002 est.) |
Language | Arabic (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, diverse dialects of Nilotic, Nilo-Hamitic, Sudanic languages, English (official) note: program of "Arabization" in process |
Religion | Islam 70% (in north), indigenous beliefs 25%, Christian 5% (mostly in south and Khartoum) |
Calling Code | +249 |
Time Zone | GMT+3 |
WARNING: Travel in Sudan outside Khartoum, Omdurman and the Northern State is considered dangerous. Two borderline civil wars continue to see violence, in Southern Sudan and particularly in Darfur, while extremist groups target foreign visitors for attacks and kidnapping, particularly in the Upper Nile regions and near the Ethiopian border. The U.S. State Department has renewed its travel warning for Sudan, and continues to recommend against all non-essential travel to the country. |
Sudan (Arabic: السودان Al-Sudan) is the third largest country in Africa and sixteenth largest in the world, bordering Egypt, Eritrea, Central African Republic, Chad, Ethiopia, Libya, and South Sudan. Getting a visa for Sudan is an expensive hit-and-miss affair, but if you do manage to get in, and you stick to the safe areas, you will probably have a memorable experience. The Sudanese people are very hospitable, and you can visit some awesome tourist attractions without even seeing another tourist.