According to PHYSICSCAT, Sudan, whose official name is the Republic of Sudan or Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Africa, located in the northeast of the continent. Until the independence of South Sudan it was the largest country in Africa.
It is an eminently flat country. A large number of different ethnic groups coexist in it. It is generally a young population, with high rates of birth and infant mortality. Although the average population density is low, it increases along the Nile. Sudan is one of the poorest countries in the world and its economy maintains the characteristics of underdevelopment. Agriculture continues to be the main economic resource of the country since it employs 80% of the economically active population. The main cash crop is cotton, which accounts for about half of exports. The main subsistence crops are durra, millet, maize and cassava.
The industry employs a small percentage of the population and is limited to treating local agricultural products, textile factories, tanneries and oil mills.
Economy
80% of the population works in the agricultural sector. The situation of civil war that the country lived through for many years led it to have high inflation levels at certain times, together with brutal falls, the result of the vicissitudes of the military operations.
Sudan’s agriculture produces peanuts, cotton, sorghum, millet, wheat, gum arabic, sugar cane, cassava, mangoes, papaya, bananas, sweet potatoes, sesame; sheep and other animals are also raised.
In the country there are industries associated with oil production, cotton ginning, textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap production, shoes, pharmaceuticals, armaments, and the assembly of cars and light trucks.
Sudan mainly exports gold, oil and its derivatives, cotton, sesame, peanuts, cattle, gum arabic and sugar and imports machinery, food, manufactured products, transport equipment, medicines, chemicals, textiles and wheat. The main markets for its exports are Macao and the United Arab Emirates, and it imports mainly from Macao, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, India, Egypt and Germany.
The oil sector has driven much of Sudan’s GDP growth since it began exporting oil in 1999. For almost a decade, the economy skyrocketed due to increased oil production, high prices, and significant inflows of foreign direct investment. Following South Sudan’s secession, Sudan has struggled to maintain economic stability, as oil revenues now offer a much lower proportion due to the country’s need for foreign exchange and budget income. Sudan is trying to generate new sources of income, such as mining gold and carrying out an austerity program to cut costs.
Sudan introduced a new currency, called the Sudanese pound, following the secession of South Sudan, but the value of the currency has steadily fallen since its introduction. Khartoum devalued the official currency in June 2012, when it passed austerity measures that included fuel subsidies. Sudan is also facing rising inflation, which reached 47% on an annual basis in November of that same year. Ongoing conflicts in southern Kordofan, Darfur, and the Blue Nile.
The lack of basic infrastructure in large areas, and the utilization, by the population in subsistence agriculture ensure that a large part of the population will remain at or below the poverty line in the coming years [10] .
Education
Children enter preschool education (Khalwas – Koranic schools and kindergartens) at four years of age. The preschool education lasts two years and is not compulsory. Children are admitted to the basic school at the age of six. Basic education lasts 8 years and has been compulsory since 1998.
Student assessment includes periodic testing, end-of-school year examinations for promotion to the next grade, and the Basic Education Certificate Examination for Transition to Secondary Level.
Certificates are awarded to those who pass the examination with a minimum percentage of 50%. The certificate is issued by the General Directorate of Evaluation of Sudan. General secondary (academic) education lasts for 3 years and concludes with the examination to obtain the Sudanese School Certificate. In the first two years, students follow the same curriculum; in the final year, students choose between the arts area (humanities) or science.
The secondary education is available for men in non – academic fields such as agriculture, the trade or industry. Technical and vocational schools provide instruction in both academic and technical areas. The courses last 3 years and lead to the examination for the Sudanese School Certificate. Students who pass the exam can enter a technical university. There are few schools that offer secondary education for women, in areas known as “home economics.”
Additionally, there are schools that offer 2-year vocational training courses to basic education graduates, who graduate in a diverse variety of fields. The certificate is awarded on the degree of distinction, as accredited or promoted. The percentage for promotion is obtained from seven subjects taken as part of the examination; These include four basic subjects: Arabic, English, Mathematics, and Religion (Islam / Christianity).
Prior to this structuring of basic and secondary education, there was a system that consisted of 6 years of primary education, 3 years of basic secondary and 3 years of upper secondary. The top type has not undergone significant structural changes [12] .
In the country there are about twenty universities of different profiles [13] , including one only for women: Ahfad University for women [14] . Among the most prestigious are the Sudan University of Science and Technology [15] , the University of Kordofan [16] and the University of Khartoum [17] in the capital.
