The two countries – Malaysia and Sudan, are like chalk and cheese.
Sudan is the largest and one of the most geographically diverse countries in Africa. The south is an area of swamps and rain forests and is separated from the mostly desert north by mountain ranges. The River Nile splits the country from east to west. Sudan's borders were drawn up by colonial powers with little regard to cultural realities on the ground.
On the other hand, equatorial Malaysia consists of two regions, famed for their dense rainforests and separated by 640 miles of the South China Sea.
Sudan has a population of 43.2 million (UN 2010) in an area of 2.5 million sq. km. The life expectancy is 58 years (men), and 61 years (women). The main exports are oil, cotton, sesame, livestock and hides, gum Arabic. The GNI per capita is USD 1,220
Malaysia has a population of 27.9 million in an area covering 329,847sq.km. The life expectancy is 73 years (men) and 78 years (women). The main exports are electronic equipments, petroleum and liquefied natural gas, chemicals, palm oil, wood and wood products, rubber and textiles. The GNI per capita is USD 7,230 (World Bank 2009).
Sudan's independence was rapidly overshadowed by conflict. Two rounds of north-south civil war cost the lives of 1.5 million people, and the Darfur conflict has displaced two million people and killed more than 200,000.
President Omar Hassan al-Bashir came to power in a military coup in 1989 and has ruled with an iron fist ever since.
Most northerners in Sudan are Arabic-speaking Muslims, while the various ethnic groups in the south are mostly Christian or follow traditional religions.
The government is based in the north and many southerners feel discriminated against. North and south have had a long history of fighting. Southerners are angry with attempts to impose Islamic law on the whole country.
Last Sunday, four million people took part in the country’s referendum on whether Sudan should split in two. The referendum is a result of the 2005 Naivasha Agreement between the Khartoum central government and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army/Movement.
The vote was a condition to end almost two decades of conflict between north and south.
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