South Sudan vs. Sudan
Government
| South Sudan | Sudan | |
|---|---|---|
| Country name | conventional long form: Republic of South Sudan conventional short form: South Sudan etymology: self-descriptive name from the country's former position within Sudan prior to independence; the name "Sudan" derives from the Arabic "bilad-as-sudan" meaning "Land of the Black [peoples]" | conventional long form: Republic of the Sudan conventional short form: Sudan local long form: Jumhuriyat as-Sudan local short form: As-Sudan former: Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Sudan etymology: the name "Sudan" derives from the Arabic "bilad-as-sudan" meaning "Land of the Black [peoples]" |
| Government type | presidential republic | presidential republic |
| Capital | name: Juba geographic coordinates: 04 51 N, 31 37 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the name derives from Djouba, another name for the Bari people of South Sudan | name: Khartoum geographic coordinates: 15 36 N, 32 32 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: several explanations of the name exist; two of the more plausible are that it is derived from Arabic "al-jartum" meaning "elephant's trunk" or "hose," and likely referring to the narrow strip of land extending between the Blue and White Niles; alternatively, the name could derive from the Dinka words "khar-tuom," indicating a "place where rivers meet" |
| Administrative divisions | 10 states; Central Equatoria, Eastern Equatoria, Jonglei, Lakes, Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Unity, Upper Nile, Warrap, Western Bahr el Ghazal, Western Equatoria; note - in 2015, the creation of 28 new states was announced and in 2017 four additional; following the February 2020 peace agreement, the country was reportedly again reorganized into the 10 original states, plus 2 administrative areas, Pibor and Ruweng, and 1 special administrative status area, Abyei; this latest administrative revision has not yet been vetted by the US Board on Geographic Names | 18 states (wilayat, singular - wilayah); Blue Nile, Central Darfur, East Darfur, Gedaref, Gezira, Kassala, Khartoum, North Darfur, North Kordofan, Northern, Red Sea, River Nile, Sennar, South Darfur, South Kordofan, West Darfur, West Kordofan, White Nile note: the peace accord signed in October 2020 included a protocol to restructure the country's current 18 provinces/states into eight regions |
| Independence | 9 July 2011 (from Sudan) | 1 January 1956 (from Egypt and the UK) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 9 July (2011) | Independence Day, 1 January (1956) |
| Constitution | history: previous 2005 (preindependence); latest signed 7 July 2011, effective 9 July 2011 (Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan, 2011) amendments: proposed by the National Legislature or by the president of the republic; passage requires submission of the proposal to the Legislature at least one month prior to consideration, approval by at least two-thirds majority vote in both houses of the Legislature, and assent of the president; amended 2013, 2015, 2018 (2021) | history: previous 1973, 1998; 2005 (interim constitution, which was suspended in April 2019); latest initial draft completed by Transitional Military Council in May 2019; revised draft known as the "Draft Constitutional Charter for the 2019 Transitional Period," was signed by the Council and opposition coalition on 4 August 2019 amendments: amended 2020 to incorporate the Juba Agreement for Peace in Sudan |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 17 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Salva KIIR Mayardit (since 9 July 2011); First Vice President Riek MACHAR Teny Dhurgon (since 22 February 2020); Vice President James Wani IGGA (since 26 April 2016); Vice President TABAN Deng Gai (since 22 February 2020); Vice President Rebecca Nyandeng Chol GARANG de Mabior (since 22 February 2020); Vice President Hussein ABDELBAGI Ayii (since 22 February 2020); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Salva KIIR Mayardit (since 9 July 2011); First Vice President Taban Deng GAI (since 26 July 2016); Vice President James Wani IGGA (since 26 April 2016); Vice President TABAN Deng Gai (since 22 February 2020); Vice President Rebecca Nyandeng Chol GARANG de Mabior (since 22 February 2020); Vice President Hussein ABDELBAGI Ayii (since 22 February 2020); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government cabinet: National Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the Transitional National Legislative Assembly elections/appointments: president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 11-15 April 2010 (next election scheduled for 2015 postponed to 2018 and again to 2021) election results: Salva KIIR Mayardit elected president; percent of vote - Salva KIIR Mayardit (SPLM) 93%, Lam AKOL (SPLM-DC) 7% | chief of state: president (vacant); note - in August 2019, the ruling military council and civilian opposition alliance signed a power-sharing deal as the "Sovereignty Council," chaired by General Abd-al-Fatah al-BURHAN Abd-al-Rahman and consisting of 6 civilians and 5 generals; the Council is currently led by the military but is intended to transition to civilian leadership in May 2021 until elections can be held; General BURHAN serves as both chief of state and head of government head of government: president (vacant); note - in August 2019, the ruling military council and civilian opposition alliance signed a power-sharing deal as the "Sovereignty Council," chaired by General Abd-al-Fatah al-BURHAN Abd-al-Rahman and consisting of 6 civilians and 5 generals; the Council is currently led by the military but is intended to transition to civilian leadership in May 2021 until elections can be held (Abd-al-Rahman) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister (2019) elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed; last held on 13-16 April 2015 (next to be held in 2022 at the end of the transitional period); prime minister typically appointed by the president; note - the position of prime minister was reinstated in December 2016 as a result of the 2015-16 national dialogue process, and President al-BASHIR appointed BAKRI Hassan Salih to the position on 2 March 2017; on 21 August 2019, the Forces for Freedom and Change, the civilian opposition alliance, named Abdallah HANDOUK as prime minister of Sudan for the transitional period election results: Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR reelected president; percent of vote - Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR (NCP) 94.1%, other (15 candidates) 5.9% |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral National Legislature consists of: Council of States, established by presidential decree in August 2011 (50 seats; 20 former members of the Council of States and 30 appointed representatives) Transitional National Legislative Assembly, established on 4 August 2016, in accordance with the August 2015 Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (400 seats; 170 members elected in April 2010, 96 members of the former National Assembly, 66 members appointed after independence, and 68 members added as a result of the 2016 Agreement); the TNLA will be expanded to 550 members after the transitional government forms elections: Council of States - established and members appointed 1 August 2011 National Legislative Assembly - last held 11-15 April 2010 but did not take office until July 2011; current parliamentary term extended until 2021) election results: Council of States - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - SPLM 20, unknown 30; composition - men 44, women 6, percent of women 12% National Legislative Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - SPLM 251, DCP 10, independent 6, unknown 133; composition - men 291, women 109, percent of women 27.3%; note - total National Legislature percent of women 25.6% | description: according to the August 2019 Constitutional Decree, which established Sudan's transitional government, the Transitional Legislative Council (TLC) will serve as the national legislature during the transitional period until elections can be held in 2022; as of early December 2019, the TLC had not been established elections: Council of State - last held 1 June 2015 election results: Council of State - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; composition - men 35, women 19, percent of women 35.2% National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NCP 323, DUP 25, Democratic Unionist Party 15, other 44, independent 19; composition - men 296 women 130, percent of women 30.5%; note - total National Legislature percent of women 31% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court of South Sudan (consists of the chief and deputy chief justices, 9 other justices and normally organized into panels of 3 justices, except when sitting as a Constitutional panel of all 9 justices chaired by the chief justice) judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the president upon proposal of the Judicial Service Council, a 9-member judicial and administrative body; justice tenure set by the National Legislature subordinate courts: national level - Courts of Appeal; High Courts; County Courts; state level - High Courts; County Courts; customary courts; other specialized courts and tribunals | highest courts: National Supreme Court (consists of 70 judges organized into panels of 3 judges and includes 4 circuits that operate outside the capital); Constitutional Court (consists of 9 justices including the court president); note - the Constitutional Court resides outside the national judiciary judge selection and term of office: National Supreme Court and Constitutional Court judges selected by the Supreme Judicial Council, which replaced the National Judicial Service Commission upon enactment of the Draft Constitutional Charter for the 2019 Transitional Period subordinate courts: Court of Appeal; other national courts; public courts; district, town, and rural courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Democratic Change or DC [Onyoti Adigo NYIKWEC] (formerly Sudan People's Liberation Movement-Democratic Movement or SPLM-DC) Sudan People's Liberation Movement or SPLM [Salva KIIR Mayardit] Sudan People's Liberation Movement-In Opposition or SPLM-IO [Riek MACHAR Teny Dhurgon] | Democratic Unionist Party or DUP [Jalal al-DIGAIR] Democratic Unionist Party [Muhammad Uthman al-MIRGHANI] Federal Umma Party [Dr. Ahmed Babikir NAHAR] Muslim Brotherhood or MB National Congress Party or NCP (in November 2019, Sudan's transitional government approved a law to "dismantle" the regime of former President Omar al-Bashir, including the dissolution of his political party, the NCP) National Umma Party or NUP [Saddiq al-MAHDI] Popular Congress Party or PCP [Hassan al-TURABI] Reform Movement Now [Dr. Ghazi Salahuddin al-ATABANI]Sudan National Front [Ali Mahmud HASANAYN] Sudanese Communist Party or SCP [Mohammed Moktar Al-KHATEEB] Sudanese Congress Party or SCoP [Ibrahim Al-SHEIKH] Umma Party for Reform and Development Unionist Movement Party or UMP |
| International organization participation | AU, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOM, IPU, ITU, MIGA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WMO | ABEDA, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Philip Jada NATANA (since 17 September 2018) chancery: 1015 31st Street NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 600-2238 FAX: [1] (202) 644-9910 email address and website: info.ssdembassy@gmail.com https://www.southsudanembassyusa.org/ | chief of mission: Ambassador Nureldin Mohamed Hamed SATTI (since 17 September 2020) chancery: 2210 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 338-8565 FAX: [1] (202) 667-2406 email address and website: consular@sudanembassy.org https://www.sudanembassy.org/ |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); embassy: Kololo Road adjacent to the EU's compound, Juba mailing address: 4420 Juba Place, Washington DC 20521-4420 telephone: [211] 912-105-188 email address and website: ACSJuba@state.gov https://ss.usembassy.gov/ | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Brian SHUKAN (since October 2019) embassy: P.O. Box 699, Kilo 10, Soba, Khartoum mailing address: 2200 Khartoum Place, Washington DC 20521-2200 telephone: [249] 187-0-22000 email address and website: ACSKhartoum@state.gov https://sd.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green; the red band is edged in white; a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side contains a gold, five-pointed star; black represents the people of South Sudan, red the blood shed in the struggle for freedom, green the verdant land, and blue the waters of the Nile; the gold star represents the unity of the states making up South Sudan note: resembles the flag of Kenya; one of only two national flags to display six colors as part of its primary design, the other is South Africa's | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with a green isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; colors and design based on the Arab Revolt flag of World War I, but the meanings of the colors are expressed as follows: red signifies the struggle for freedom, white is the color of peace, light, and love, black represents the people of Sudan (in Arabic 'Sudan' means black), green is the color of Islam, agriculture, and prosperity |
| National anthem | name: South Sudan Oyee! (Hooray!) lyrics/music: collective of 49 poets/Juba University students and teachers note: adopted 2011; anthem selected in a national contest | name: "Nahnu Djundulla Djundulwatan" (We Are the Army of God and of Our Land) lyrics/music: Sayed Ahmad Muhammad SALIH/Ahmad MURJAN note: adopted 1956; originally served as the anthem of the Sudanese military |
| National symbol(s) | African fish eagle; national colors: red, green, blue, yellow, black, white | secretary bird; national colors: red, white, black, green |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of South Sudan dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Sudan dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years |
Source: CIA Factbook
