Sudan, 2006. World factbook.

Sudan is the largest country in Africa and one of the world's poorest countries. The Nile River, which flows from the south to the north, has secured Sudan's place in world history. In the north, the culture is Arabic, the religion is Islam, and the landscape is mostly desert. In the south, the culture is African, the religions are animist and Christian, and the landscape is savannah (subtropical grasslands). The north and south are separated by a large swamp called the Sudd, from which Sudan gets its name. Since independence in 1956, Sudan has suffered from two civil wars, a number of military coups d'etat, large-scale drought and famine, as well as political and economic instability.

Mennonites first began their work in Sudan in 1972. The program continued to be a fully seconded one, with all workers supervised not by their "primary" agencies (Mennonite) but rather by "secondary" agencies, in this case the Sudan Council of Churches or ACROSS, an externally based consortium of evangelical development agencies. In 1986 there were 17 Mennonite Central Committee volunteers serving in both the north and south, in relief work with Ugandan and Ethiopian refugees, and in longer term development projects. 

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Scottdale, Pennsylvania, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 5, p. 862. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.

©1996-2008 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.

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