Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

South Sudan and the Nation-Building Project: Lessons and Challenges

  • Chapter
National Democratic Reforms in Africa

Abstract

On January 9, 2005, the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) 1 brought an end to the brutal civil war that engulfed Sudan before its independence in 1956. The CPA established the semi-autonomous Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS), in the southern part of the Republic of Sudan. This was effectively transformed into the Government of the Republic of South Sudan on July 9, 2011. The root causes of the war included political, social, and economic marginalization of the peripheries, the role of religion in the state, self-determination, the distribution of power, forced Arabization and Islamization, mismanagement of diversity, national crisis of identity, and the institutional legacy of colonialism. The ensuing conflict devastated a significant part of Africa’s largest country and deprived Southern, Western, and Eastern Sudan of stability, growth, and development. Consistent with the mandate of the CPA, in January 2011, South Sudan exercised its right to self-determination and effectively voted to secede from North Sudan. More than two million people died and four million were uprooted due to the civil war.

Special thanks to Tijana Gligorevic and Pamela Polanski-Boardman for reading the earlier draft of the chapter. Their feedback was highly appreciated.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Abdullah, Ibrahim (2003). “When Does an Immigrant/Non-Indigene Become a Citizen: Reflections on the Nation-State Project in Contemporary Africa.” African Sociological Review, 7(2): 113–117.

    Google Scholar 

  • Adejumobi, Said (2001). “Citizenship, Rights, and the Problem of Conflicts and Civil Wars in Africa.” Human Rights Quarterly, 23(1): 148–170.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • African National Congress (ANC) (2011). The Freedom Charter. African National Congress, 1955 [cited March 10, 2011]. Available from http://www.anc.org.za/show.php?include=docs/misc/1955/charter.html.

    Google Scholar 

  • Alex, Cobham (2005). “Causes of Conflict in Sudan: Testing The Black Book.” European Journal of Development Research, 17(3): 462.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Armah, Ayi Kwei (2010). “Remembering the Dismembered Continent (2).” New African (493).

    Google Scholar 

  • Awolich, Abraham A. (2013). Federal Democracy: A Strategic Institutional Choice for South Sudan. Juba, South Sudan: The Sudd Institute. Accessible from < http://www.suddinstitute.org/publications/show/federal-democracy-a-strategic-institutional-choice-for-south-sudan/>.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bassiouni, David (2010). Keynote Address by Dr. David S. Bassiouni to ESCA-USA 10th Annual Conference (September 4–5, 2010). Washington, DC.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beshir, Mohamed Omer (1968). The Southern Sudan: Background to Conflict. London: C. Hurst & Co.

    Google Scholar 

  • Betts, Raymond F. (1966). The “Scramble” for Africa; Causes and Dimensions of Empire. Boston, MA: Heath.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brosché, J. (2009). Sharing Power-Enabling Peace? Evaluating Sudan’s Comprehensive Peace Agreement 2005. Uppsala, Sweden: Uppsala University, Uppsala and the Mediation Support Unit, Department of Political Affairs, United Nations, New York, and with the support of the Government of Canada.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chamberlain, Muriel Evelyn (1999). The Scramble for Africa. 2nd ed. London and New York: Longman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Collins, Robert O. and Francis M. Deng (1984). The British in the Sudan, 1898–1956: The Sweetness and the Sorrow. Stanford, CA: Hoover Institution Press. The Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) between The Government of The Republic of The Sudan and The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Sudan People’s Liberation Army.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Deng, Francis M. (1990). “War of Visions for the Nation.” Middle East Journal, 44(4): 596–609.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deng, Francis M. (1995). War of Visions: Conflict of Identities in the Sudan. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deng, Francis M. (1998). “Africa’s Dilemmas in the Sudan.” The World Today, 54(3): 72–74.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deng, Francis M. (2010). New Sudan in the Making?: Essays on a Nation in Painful Search of Itself. Trenton, NJ: Red Sea Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deng, Luka Biong (2011). Crimes against Humanity in Abyei: Why I Resigned from the Sudanese Government: Speech Delivered at the “WE HAVE A DREAM: Global Summit against Discrimination and Prosecution.” New York, NY. Accessible at <http://paanluelwel2011.wordpress.com/2011/09/26/dr-luka-biong-deng-crimes-against-humanity-in-abyei-why-i-resigned-from-the-sudanese-government/>.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deng, Luka Biong (2012). Two Sudans: The Challenges of Power Relations and External Interests. In 9th International South Sudan and Sudan Studies Conference. Bonn, Germany: BICC Bonn International Center for Conversion.

    Google Scholar 

  • Downie, Richard (2011). Southern Sudan’s Referendum. Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) 2011 [cited August 22, 2011]. Available from http://csis.org/publication/southern-sudans-referendum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ekeh, Peter P. (1975). “Colonialism and the Two Publics in Africa: A Theoretical Statement.” Comparative Studies in Society and History, 17(1): 91–112.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fadlalla Ali, M. H. (2004). Short History of Sudan. Lincoln, NE: iUniverse, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Federal Government of Nigeria (1999), Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999. (Abuja: Federal Government Printers).

    Google Scholar 

  • Garang, James Alic (2013). The Question of Big Government, and Financial Viability: The Case of South Sudan. In Policy Brief. Juba, South Sudan: The Sudd Institute. Accessible from < http://www.suddinstitute.org/publications/show/the-question-of-big-government-and-financial-viability-the-case-of-south-sudan/>.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garang, John (1992). The Call for Democracy in Sudan (edited and introduced by Mansour Khalid). Edited by Mansour Khalid. 2nd ed. New York: Kegan Paul International.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garang, John (2013). TEXT: Garang’s Speech at the Signing Ceremony of S. Sudan Peace Deal. Sudan Tribune, January 10, 2005 [cited January 03, 2013]. Available from http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article7476.

    Google Scholar 

  • GOSS (2012). States of South Sudan. Government of the Republic of South Sudan. 2012 [cited March 21, 2012]. Available from http://www.goss.org/.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hagg, Gerard and Peter Kagwanja (2007). “Identity and Peace: Reconfiguring Conflict Resolution in Africa.” The African Journal on Conflict Resolution, 7(2): 9–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Haile, Minasse (1997). “The New Ethiopian Constitution: Its Impact upon Unity, Human Rights and Development.” Suffolk Transnational Law Review, 20(1).

    Google Scholar 

  • Hailey, M. (1944). The Future of Colonial Peoples: By Lord Hailey. London: Oxford University Press (printed by the Camelot Press).

    Google Scholar 

  • Harir, Sharif and Terje Tvedt (1994). Short-Cut to Decay: The Case of the Sudan. Uppsala, Sweden: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet.

    Google Scholar 

  • Idris, Amir H. (2001). Sudan’s Civil War: Slavery, Race, and Formational Identities. Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Idris, Amir H. (2005). Conflict and Politics of Identity in Sudan. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) (2011). SUDAN: Managing the Great Trek Southwards. Integrated Regional Information Networks: The humanitarian news and analysis service of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2011 [cited March 10, 2011]. Available from http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?Reportid=92150.

    Google Scholar 

  • International Crisis Group (ICG) (2005). Garang’s Death: Implications for Peace in Sudan. In Africa Briefing N ° 30. Nairobi, Kenya/Brussels, Belgium: International Crisis Group. Available at < http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/africa/horn-of-africa/sudan/B030%20Garangs%20Death%20Implications%20for%20Peace%20in%20Sudan.pdf>.

    Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, Douglas H. (2003). The Root Causes of Sudan’s Civil Wars. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kalo, Guma Kunda Komey (2010). “The Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the Questions of Identity, Territory and Political Destiny of the Indigenous Nuba of the Sudan.” International Journal of African Renaissance Studies, 5(1): 48–64. doi: 10.1080/18186874.2010.500030.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kameir, El Wathig (2011). The Political Economy of South Sudan: A Scoping Analytical Study. Tunis-Belvedère, Tunisia: The African Development Bank. Accessible from <http://www.afdb.org/en/documents/#c>.

    Google Scholar 

  • Laws of Southern Sudan: The Local Government Act, 2009.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lobban, Richard, Robert Kramer, and Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban (2012). “Ethnic Groups of Sudan.” In Richard Lobban, Robert Kramer, and Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban (eds), Historical Dictionary of Sudan. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) (2010). Southern Sudan at Odds with Itself: Dynamics of Conflict and Predicaments of Peace. London: London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).

    Google Scholar 

  • Lugard, F. D. (1929). The Dual Mandate in British Tropical Africa. Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood & Sons Ltd.

    Google Scholar 

  • MacMichael, H. A. (1923). Indirect Rule for Pagan Communities; in Mamdani’s Coursepack for Major Debates in the Study of Africa 2008–2010. New York: Columbia University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Also cited in Mamdani, M. (2009). Saviors and Survivors: Darfur, Politics, and the War on Terror. New York: Pantheon Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maffey, J. L. (1927). Minute, His Excellency the Governor General: In SAD 695/8; in Mamdani’s Coursepack for Major Debates in the Study of Africa 2008–2010. New York: Columbia University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Also cited in Mamdani, M. (2009). Saviors and Survivors: Darfur, Politics, and the War on Terror. New York: Pantheon Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maine, Henry Sumner, Sir. (1876). Village-Communities in the East and West: Six Lectures Delivered at Oxford, to Which Are Added Other Lectures, Addresses, and Essays. London: J. Murray.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maine, Henry Sumner, Sir. (1914). Lectures on the Early History of Institutions. 7th ed. London: John Murray.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maine, Henry Sumner, Sir. (1960). Ancient Law: Its Connection to the History of Early Society; Introduction by J. H. Morgan. London: J.M. Dent; New York: Dutton.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mamdani, Mahmood (1996). Citizen and Subject: Contemporary Africa and the Legacy of Late Colonialism. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mamdani, Mahmood (2001). Understanding the Crisis in Kivu: Report of the CODESRIA Mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo 1997. Dakar, Senegal: Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mamdani, Mahmood (2005). “Political Identity, Citizenship and Ethnicity in Post Colonial Africa: Keynote Address,” Arusha Conference: New Frontiers of Social Policy. Arusha, TZ: World Bank.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mamdani, Mahmood (2009). Saviors and Survivors: Darfur, Politics, and the War on Terror. New York: Pantheon Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mamdani, Mahmood (2011). Mahmood Mamdani’s Talk on South Sudan’s Referendum. The Makerere Institute of Social Research (MISR), March 17, 2011 [cited March 17, 2011]. Available from http://mak.ac.ug/documents/mamdani/ProfMamdaniPaperSSudanReferendum.pdf.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mamdani, Mahmood (2012). Define and Rule: Native as Political Identity. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Manby, Bronwen (2009). Struggles for Citizenship in Africa. New York: Zed Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mandela, Nelson (2011). The Future of South Africa. The Asian Age 1994 [cited March 11, 2011]. Available from http://www.sahistory.org.za/pages/people/special%20projects/mandela/speeches/1990s/1994/1994_future_of_SA.html.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mantena, K. (2010). Alibis of Empire: Henry Maine and the Ends of Liberal Imperialism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Mengisteab, Kidane (2007). “Identity Politics, Democratisation and State Building in Ethiopia’s Federal Arrangement.” The African Journal on Conflict Resolution, 7(2): 63–92.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mkandawire, Thandika (2002). “The Terrible Toll of Post-Colonial ‘Rebel Movements’ in Africa: Towards an Explanation of the Violence against the Peasantry.” The Journal of Modern African Studies, 40(2): 181–215. doi: 10.1017/s0022278x02003889.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mkandawire, Thandika (2010). “Running While Others Walk: Knowledge and the Challenge of Africa’s Development-LSE African Initiative Inaugural Lecture.” Africa Development, XXXVI(2): 1–36: Available at <http://www.ajol.info/index.php/ad/article/view/74100/64761>.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nyaba, Peter Adwok (2010). “SPLM-NCP Asymmetrical Power Relations Jeopardise the Implementation of the CPA and the Future of the Sudan.” International Journal of African Renaissance Studies, 5(1): 138–147.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nzongola-Ntalaja, Georges (2004). “Citizenship, Political Violence, and Democratization in Africa.” Global Governance, 10(4): 403–409.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pakenham, Thomas (1991). The Scramble for Africa: White Man’s Conquest of the Dark Continent from1876 to 1912. New York: Avon Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pillay, Suren (2010). “The Political Imagination of State Reform: Reflections on the Making of Political Community after Apartheid in South Africa.” CODESRIA Bulletin No.1 & 2: 1–55.

    Google Scholar 

  • Political Parties Act. February 29, 2012. Accessible at <http://aceproject.org/ero-en /regions/africa/SS/south-sudan-political-parties-act-no.-33-of-2012/view>.

  • Small Arms Survey (2011a). Emerging Armed Groups and Militias. The Sudan Human Security Baseline Assessment Project. [cited August 18, 2011]. Available from http://www.smallarmssurveysudan.org/facts-figures-armed-groups-southern-sudan-emerging.php.

    Google Scholar 

  • Small Arms Survey (2011b). “George Athor Rebellion, Jonglei State.” In Sudan Human Security Baseline Assessment (HSBA). Geneva, Switzerland.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smuts, Jan Christiaan (1930). Africa and Some World Problems: Including the Rhodes Memorial Lectures Delivered in Michaelmas Term, 1929. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) (2011). Estimates for the Total Number of IDPs for all of Sudan (as of January 2011). Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, January 4, 2011 [cited July 16, 2011]. Available from http://www.internal-displacement.org/idmc/website/countries.nsf/(httpEnvelopes)/0026B2F86813855FC1257570006185A0?OpenDocument.

    Google Scholar 

  • The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) and Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) (2011). Briefing paper on Southern Sudan: IDPs return to face slow land allocation, and no shelter, basic services or livelihoods. Southern Sudan /Geneva: Internal DisplacementMonitoringCentre/Norwegian RefugeeCouncil: Accessible at <http://www.internal-displacement.org/briefing/south-sudan>.

  • The Southern Sudan Referendum Commission (SSRC) (2011). SSRC Announces Final Referendum Results. Southern Sudan Referendum Commission (SSRC). February 08, 2011 [cited February 10, 2011]. Available from http://www.ssrc.sd/SSRC2/newsview.php.

    Google Scholar 

  • The Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan (2011). The Republic of South Sudan: Sudan Tribune. Available at: <http://www.sudantribune.com/IMG/pdf/The_Draft_Transitional_Constitution_of_the_ROSS2–2.pdf>. Accessed on November 01, 2012.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations News Centre (2011a). Some 76,000 People Fleeing Conflict in Sudan Enter Ethiopia, South Sudan — UN. UN News Centre [cited November 28, 2011]. Available from http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=40523&Cr=sudan&Cr1=#.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations News Centre (2011b). UN Welcomes South Sudan as 193rd Member State. UN News Centre [cited July 14, 2011]. Available from http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=39034&Cr=South+Sudan&Cr1.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) (2011a). Sudan-South Kordofan: Situation Report No. 14. New York, NY/Geneva, Switzerland: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCH A). Accessible at <http://www.unsudanig.org/docs/South%20Kordofan%20Situation%20Report%20No.14.pdf>.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) (2011b). SUDAN: ABYEI crisis (Situation Report No. 12). New York, NY/ Geneva, Switzerland: United Nations Off ice for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Accessible at <http://www.unsudanig.org/docs/OCHA%20Situation%20Report%20_12%20on%20Abyei%20Crisis%209%20June%202011.pdf>.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) (2011c). Sudan: South Kordofan (Situation Report No. 11). New York, NY/ Geneva, Switzerland: United Nations Off ice for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Accessible at <http://www.unsudanig.org/docs/OCHA%20Situation%20Report%20_12%20on%20Abyei%20Crisis%209%20June%202011.pdf>.

    Google Scholar 

  • The United States Agency for International Development (USAID). (2011). Complex Emergency: Fact Sheet #2, Fiscal Year (FY) 2011. Washington, D.C.: Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance (DCHA) and The Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA).

    Google Scholar 

  • Zambakari, Christopher (2011). “South Sudan in the Post-CPA Era: Prospects and Challenges.” Pambazuka News (542). Accessible from <http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75248>.

  • Zambakari, Christopher (2012a). “In Search of Durable Peace: The Comprehensive Peace Agreement and Power Sharing in Sudan.” The Journal of North African Studies, 18(1): 16–31. doi: 10.1080/13629387.2012.726088.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zambakari, Christopher (2012b). “Old Sudan and New Sudan: Political Crisis and the Search for Comprehensive Peace.” Pambazuka News (567). Accessible from <http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/79401>.

  • Zambakari, Christopher (2012c). “Post-Referendum Sudan: The Nation-Building Project and Its Challenges.” Rutgers Journal of Law & Public Policy, 9(3): 505–544.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zambakari, Christopher (2012d). “Understanding Challenges of South Sudan: A Rejoinder.” Pambazuka News (606). Available at <http://www.pambazuka.org /en /category/comment/85433>.

Download references

Authors
  1. Christopher Zambakari
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Lusaka, Zambia

    Said Adejumobi

Copyright information

© 2015 Said Adejumobi

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Zambakari, C. (2015). South Sudan and the Nation-Building Project: Lessons and Challenges. In: Adejumobi, S. (eds) National Democratic Reforms in Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137518828_4

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137518828_4

  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, New York

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-349-56738-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-137-51882-8

  • eBook Packages: Palgrave History CollectionHistory (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation