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Democracy and Governance in Sudan
This is an exciting time for Sudan and for USAID’s programs. Among the
Sudanese people there is a new-found optimism that the prospects for peace are greater than ever. A
shift to higher-level negotiations since September 2003 between Dr. John Garang, leader of the Sudan
People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) and Vice President of the Government of Sudan (GOS), Ali
Osman Mohamed Taha, yielded a landmark security agreement and a revenue sharing agreement.
Sudan is closer to peace now than at any other time in the last 20 years and a peace settlement is
anticipated by the summer of 2004.
The current and next rounds of talks are crucial, as they represent the final phase of reaching a peace
agreement. Two major areas of disagreement remain: power-sharing and the status of the three
contested areas in northern Sudan controlled by SPLM. Pressure from the United States and other
international actors played a crucial and welcome role in bringing the peace process to its current
advanced stage.
Stable southern areas experienced some economic recovery, with food surpluses realized in the Western
Equatoria region and trade increased with Uganda. However, enormous development challenges persist.
Intermittent conflict and related human rights abuses (especially in the western Sudan region of Darfur)
and deep ethnic and religious rifts will make reconciliation and a transition to peace difficult. The lack of
basic physical infrastructure and institutional capacity, particularly in the south, will impede economic and
social progress. Extremely high rates of illiteracy, limited access to basic education, high rates of child
mortality and infectious diseases, an emerging HIV/AIDS threat, lack of financial institutions and
economic opportunities, low agricultural production, and inaccessible markets are legacies from years of
conflict and development neglect. With USAID assistance, some southern communities have begun
rebuilding their education systems and have begun economic recovery programs.
The U.S. national interest in Sudan is to achieve a durable peace that will improve stability, help
safeguard human rights and religious tolerance, end state sponsorship of international terrorism, and
ensure unimpeded access for the delivery of humanitarian and development assistance. A peaceful
Sudan is also important to the United States to promote regional stability in the volatile Horn of Africa. TheU.S. Government is urging both parties to reach agreement, and senior Administration officials have
provided encouragement and diplomatic pressure to the Government of Sudan and the SPLM to stay the
course.
(Excerpted from the 2005 Congressional Budget Justification for Sudan)
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