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North Africa

Sudan

North-eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea.

Muslim populationMajority Muslimno percentage published

Population53.3 millionpeople (current)

CapitalKhartoumUTC+3

Currency547 = $1Sudanese pounds (SDG) (2022)

Country basics

Sudan is a republic in northeastern Africa on the Red Sea, crossed by the Nile river valley.

Sudan is a country with Khartoum as its capital and Arabic and English as official languages, and South Sudan separated from it in 2011. The pound is the currency, and gold, livestock, sesame and gum arabic lead its export earnings.

Official name

Republic of the Sudan

Region

Africa · Northern Africa

Government

Federal republic under a military junta

Time zonesCheck the offset for your own city

UTC+03:00

Driving side

Right

Phone code

+249

Currency

Sudanese pound (SDG, ج.س)

Member of

Arab League; UN; African Union

Website

https://www.sudan.gov.sd

Faith and language

Religions

Sunni Muslim, small Christian minority

Languages

Arabic; English

People and cities

Population

53.3 million (current)

Median ageHalf the population is younger than this

19.5 years (2025)

Living in cities

36.3% (2023)

Largest cities

Khartoum (capital) 6.344 million · Nyala 1.057 million

Money and cost of living

Exchange rateYearly average; check today’s rate before you budget

547 Sudanese pounds (SDG) per US dollar (2022)

Income per personGDP per person, adjusted for local prices (2021 dollars)

$1,900 (2024)

InflationHow much prices rose over the year

138.8% (2022)

Unemployment

11.45% (2023)

Health and daily life

Life expectancy

67.8 years (2024)

Doctors

0.25 per 1,000 people (2017)

Hospital beds

0.7 per 1,000 people (2020)

Safe drinking water

64.9% of people (2022)

Electricity

63.2% of people (2022)

Internet users

26% of people (2020)

Land and climate

Climate

Hot and dry; arid desert; rainy season varies by region (April to November)

SizeSlightly less than one-fifth the size of the US

1,886,068 sq km

Natural hazards

Dust storms and periodic persistent droughts

National holiday

Independence Day, 1 January (1956)