South Sudan Oyee! Trivia Quiz

Answer: East Central Africa

The landlocked country of South Sudan has had a long journey to independence. During the period of European colonization of Africa, the region was part of Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, which also included Egypt and what is now known as Sudan. The area was jointly ruled by Egypt and Great Britain, but, since Great Britain effectively controlled Egypt for most of this time, it is often considered a British colony. The Republic of Sudan became independent in 1956, part of the great wave of African independence in the middle of the 20th century. This country was comprised of two quite distinct groups. The northern part of the country was culturally basically Arabianised, with most people members of the Islamic faith; the southern part was composed of a variety of African tribes, with their tribal religions predominating. The First Sudanese Civil War (1956-1972) led to the establishment of the Southern Sudan Autonomous Region, which lasted until 1983, when the Second Sudanese Civil War broke out. In 2005, an Autonomous Government of South Sudan was formed, and negotiations to establish full independence began.

Following a referendum in January, 2011 which showed over 98% support for independence, South Sudan became an independent state on 9 July 2011 and became a member of the United Nations on 14 July 2011.

Answer: Madagascar

South Sudan's six neighbours are Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya and Ethiopia. Madagascar is an island country in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Mozambique.

Some details of the borders between South Sudan and several of its neighbours were still disputed at the time of independence. The Abyei region and the Ilemi Triangle, shown on the map, are the two most significant of these disputed areas. The northwest corner, bordering Sudan and the Central African Republic, was also subject to further negotiations. Tribal disputes within the new nation also contributed to its parlous position.

Answer: Oil

This map doesn't indicate the Abyei clearly, but it is where all those oil fields are. Approximately 80% of the oil reserves for the two countries would be located in South Sudan with the inclusion of this region, which would be a great financial boon for one of the world's most underdeveloped and impoverished states. However, as a landlocked country it would be difficult to export the oil without the cooperation of neighbours such as Sudan, through which the Greater Nile Oil Pipeline carries oil to the coastal city of Port Sudan.

In May, 2011 Sudanese forces established de facto control of the area, and the proposed referendum to allow the people of the Abyei to decide on their own future status was postponed indefinitely. When South Sudan was established in July of that year, the Abyei was declared to be both a part of the Sudanese state of South Kordofan and the South Sudanese state of Northern Bahr el Ghazal. UN Peacekeeping forces arrived at the end of June to protect human rights in the region.

Answer: Kenya

In 1902 the "Maud Line" was surveyed to establish a border between Ethiopia and British East Africa. This agreement placed the Ilemi on the Sudan side of the Sudan-Ethiopia border. A 1914 adjustment to provide security for the nomadic Turkana people, introduced ambiguity which led to continued disputes throughout the 20th century. In the 1960s Kenyan maps showed the red line on the map as the official boundary, whereas it had previously been shown dotted, to indicate an unresolved border issue. During the 1990s, that changed to show the Kenyan border on the green '1950 patrol line', thereby including most of the Ilemi. A treaty between Sudan and Ethiopia in 1972 seemed to state that Ethiopia had no claim on the triangle, but the Kenyan claim was not clarified, as they were not part of the treaty. It has been suggested that there may have been an agreement between the forces fighting for South Sudanese independence and the Kenyan government that Kenya would be allowed to control the Ilami in return for providing support to the independence movement.

A condominium is an area in which multiple countries exercise government simultaneously. They tend to be short-lived and unstable. The Ilemi is disputed, but has never been established as a condominium.

Answer: Sahel

The Sahel is a geographical zone between the Sahara Desert and the Sudanian Savannahs which stretches across the continent, including parts of the countries of Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Algeria, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Sudan, Ethiopia and Eritrea. It is to the north of South Sudan.

The Bahr el Ghazal, named for its principal river, is composed of the four northwestern states of South Sudan. Composed of swamps and plateaus, its people are mostly cattle herders and subsistence farmers. As one of the centers of fighting during the civil wars leading to independence, it had a high proportion of displaced people at the time of independence. Equatoria is composed of the three southernmost states of South Sudan, and is the location of the national capital at the time of independence, Juba. There are no prizes for guessing what river has a major tributary flowing through the three northeastern states of Greater Upper Nile.

Answer: White Nile

The White Nile is a name used somewhat loosely to refer to the system of rivers flowing from Lake Victoria to meet the 'proper' White Nile, which originates at Lake No in South Sudan, where the Bahr al Jabal and the Bahr el Ghazal rivers meet. The White Nile then flows northwards through South Sudan and Sudan, where it joins with the Blue Nile in Khartoum to form the River Nile. In the 19th century, the search for the headwaters of the Nile centred on the White Nile, with John Hanning Speke declaring that Lake Victoria was the source in 1858. This was disputed by the famous explorer Richard Francis Burton, and David Livingstone was attempting to resolve the issue when he traveled too far to the west, and pursued the Congo River. It was Henry Morton Stanley who first circumnavigated the lake and confirmed it as the source of the White Nile.

Juba was the inaugural capital of South Sudan, as well as being the capital of the state of Central Equatoria, but its lack of centrality and poor infrastructure meant that it was not seen as an ideal location for the national capital. A commission was established to explore the projected development of a new planned city to be the national capital. The proposed site for this new capital was Ramciel, in Lakes state near the centre of the country.

Answer: False

Most of South Sudan is covered by tropical forests, grasslands, and swamps. As the topographic map shows, very little of South Sudan has an elevation above 500 m. A large part of the centre of the country is covered by the Sudd, the largest freshwater wetland in the Nile River basin, and one of the largest in the world. The area of the swamp varies with the season, averaging about 30,000 sq km, but expanding to be over 130,000 sq km in the rainy season. That makes the wetland roughly the same size as the country of Greece, or the American state of Louisiana.

In 2006 the Sudd was designated as a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance. The Sudd is an important source of water for migrating birds, of which over 400 species can be found. Several species of antelopes can be found in the area, and the shallow water is home to hippopotami and crocodiles. Then there are the disease-carrying mosquitoes that breed in its stagnant waters - this place sound like the perfect holiday destination.

Answer: Little temperature change, with a wet season and a dry season

The red line (a graphical representation of the numbers in the accompanying table) shows little change during the year, with a low mean temperature about 24 degrees Centigrade (75 F) in July, and a high mean temperature around 28.5 C (83 F) in March. The blue line showing rainfall, however, is much more variable. The wet season lasts roughly from April to September.

As the location coordinates on the graph indicate, Jubal is only 4 degrees north of the equator, so it is not surprising to find that the temperature varies little with the seasons. The rainfall variations are caused by the changing predominant air flows over the region. When the winds are coming from the Arabian Peninsula in the northeast, they are generally dry, and there is little rainfall; from April through September the southwesterly winds from the Congo River basin carry much more moist air, and the rainfall increases markedly.

Answer: Mt Kinyeti

The Imatong mountain range lies along the border between South Sudan and Uganda, and Mt Kinyeti is its highest peak at just over 3,000 metres (10,000 ft). This whole mountain range was little explored by Europeans, who were more interested in the Nile than the mountains. As recently as 1922, an official map of Anglo-Egyptian Sudan only vaguely indicated their location. A map showing them clearly, and identifying them as the Imatong Mountains, was published in 1929. The first completely detailed map did not appear until 1931.

The mountains are covered with dense forests, but have been subjected to extensive clearing since the middle of the 20th century, which has led to serious erosion problems. The British started clearing the natural woodlands and replacing the trees with fast-growing pines in the 1940s, with a ban on logging above the 1500 m (4,900 ft) line. This ban was not enforced during the civil wars, and settlers established farms that led to even further increase in erosion problems. In the early years of the 21st century, efforts were made to have farmers plant crops in the tree plantations, using the space between the young trees, so that they could produce food while letting the new trees establish solid roots to anchor the soil.

Answer: Chief Justice of the Supreme Court

South Sudan was established with an independent judiciary. As Head of State, the president is the main public representative of the country; as Head of Government he oversees the day-to-day running of the government; as Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces he is ultimately responsible for the country's defense.

Salva Kiir Mayardit was one of the leaders of the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) during the fight for South Sudanese independence, and was highly regarded for his military skills and uncompromising stand on independence.