Country profile – South Sudan Version 2015 Recommended citation: FAO. 2015. AQUASTAT Country Profile – South Sudan. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Rome, Italy The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. The views expressed in this information product are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of FAO. FAO encourages the use, reproduction and dissemination of material in this information product. Except where otherwise indicated, material may be copied, downloaded and printed for private study, research and teaching purposes, or for use in non-commercial products or services, provided that appropriate acknowledgement of FAO as the source and copyright holder is given and that FAO’s endorsement of users’ views, products or services is not implied in any way. All requests for translation and adaptation rights, and for resale and other commercial use rights should be made via www.fao.org/contact-us/licencerequest or addressed to [email protected]. FAO information products are available on the FAO website (www.fao.org/ publications) and can be purchased through [email protected]. © FAO 2015 1 South Sudan GEOGRAPHY, CLIMATE AND POPULATION Geography South Sudan is the newest country in Africa. It became independent from Sudan in 2011 after a civil war and a referendum in favour of secession. South Sudan has an area of about 644 330 km2 (the exact area still needs to be confirmed), representing around 30 percent of pre-2011 Sudan. It is a landlocked country bordered by Sudan in the north, Ethiopia and Kenya in the east, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo in the south, and the Central African Republic in the west. South Sudan is constituted by 10 States, corresponding to three regions of pre-2011 Sudan: Bahr el Ghazal, Equatoria and Greater Upper Nile. Each State is further divided into counties, payams and bomas. The main feature of the country is the White Nile river extending over clay plains and slopes gradually rising southward to mountains up to 3 000 meters above sea level in the Imatong Hills. The Sudd wetland is the inland delta of the White Nile and one of the largest swamps worldwide. It consists of lakes, marshes and extensive floodplains, some parts of which are infested by insects which are hazardous to humans and livestock. The cultivable area is estimated at about 2.76 million ha (4 percent of the total land area) (Table 1) and nearly 50 percent is found in Upper Nile, Jonglei, and Warrap states. The forest resources of South Sudan cover approximately one third of the total area of the country. Natural forests are diverse including rainfall savannah, woodlands and special areas of mountainous vegetation in the Imatong mountains, making it one of the richest areas of concentrations of biodiversity in Africa. Shrubs cover around 39 percent of the country and herbaceous vegetation around 22 percent (AfDB, 2013). TABLE 1 Basic statistics and population Physical areas: Area of the country* 2012 64 433 000 ha Agricultural land (permanent meadows and pasture + cultivated land) 2012 28 533 200 ha As % of the total area of the country 2012 44 % Permanent meadows and pasture 2012 25 773 200 ha Cultivated area (arable land + area under permanent crops) 2012 2 760 000 ha - As % of the total area of the country 2011 4 % - Arable land (temp. crops + temp. fallow + temp. meadows) - ha - Area under permanent crops - ha Population: Total population 2013 11 296 000 inhabitants - Of which rural 2013 70 % Population density 2013 18 inhabitants/km2 Economy and development: Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (current US$) 2013 11 804 million US$/year Value added in agriculture (% of GDP) - % GDP per capita 2013 1 045 US$/year Human Development Index (highest = 1) - - Gender Inequality Index (equality = 0, inequality = 1) - - Access to improved drinking water sources: Total population 2012 57 % Urban population 2012 63 % Rural population 2012 55 % * The exact area still needs to be confirmed 2 Irrigation in Africa in figures - AQUASTAT Survey - 2015 FIGURE 1 Map of South Sudan South Sudan 3 Climate Most of South Sudan has a sub-humid climate. The average annual rainfall is around 900 mm/year, and ranges between 700 mm in the lowlands areas of Eastern Equatoria, Jonglei, Upper Nile, and Bahr el Ghazal and 2 200 mm/year in Western Equatoria and highland parts of Eastern Equatoria. Depending on the regions, one or two rainy seasons can be distinguished (WB, 2013): . Western and Central Equatoria have a bimodal rainfall pattern: The first occurs from April to June and the second from August to November. This pattern creates a long wet season (with just July a bit drier), a short dry period (December to March) and long agriculture growing seasons (280–300 days). Other regions have a unimodal rainfall pattern with a wet season (May to October) and a dry period (November to April). Their annual growing season is relatively short (130–150 days). The mean temperatures in South Sudan are typically above 25°C and can rise above 35°C, particularly during the dry season, which lasts from January to April, and trigger migration for pastoralists. In the more agricultural zones such as the Hills and Mountains zone and the Green belt zone, there are two rainy seasons, April to July and August to December. As a result, potential evaporation decreases from a maximum of 2 400 mm/year in the north to 1 400 mm/year in the south. However, rainfall in South Sudan is decreasing and this is likely a result of climate change, although it is relatively less in comparison to northern part of the country (WB, 2011). Population South Sudan’s population is 11.3 million in 2013 with an annual growth rate of 4.1 percent (over the period 2012-2013), which is the highest in Africa (Table 1). Population density is 18 inhabitants/km2 and 70 percent of the total population is rural. At the national level, 57 percent of the population had access to improved drinking water sources in the year 2012 (JMP, 2014). In urban areas this coverage was 63 percent, while in rural regions it was 55 percent (Table 1). The situation regarding sanitation is even worse with only 9 percent of the population with improved sanitation facilitation in 2012 (16 percent in urban areas and 7 percent in rural areas). The Human Development Index is not yet available for South Sudan. However, years of conflict have left South Sudan one of the most underdeveloped regions worldwide, despite its rich natural resources. Poverty in South Sudan is widespread and especially acute in rural areas, the remote areas of the south and in the Bahr el Ghazal region (GoSS, 2011). It has an incidence of 50.6 percent in 2009. In 2013, the life expectancy in the country was 55.3 years and the under-five mortality was 104 per 1000 births, progressing from 121 in 2008. Primary education is also lacking behind in South Sudan, as attendance was only 41.3 percent of the children in 2011, one of the lowest enrolment rate in the world, even lower for girls (34.3 percent). Consequently, the adult literacy of the over 15 years old in 2010 is very low with 27 percent (GoSS, 2011). ECONOMY, AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SECURITY Although endowed with rich natural resources, South Sudan remains comparatively underdeveloped as a result of recurrent conflicts. Its economy is characterized by a strong dependence on oil resources and revenues, a currently limited domestic production and a high reliance on imports. The GDP of South Sudan was US$11 800 million (current US$) in 2013. The oil sector accounts for 60 percent of the total GDP in 2010 (AfDB, 2013). However, oil exports like any other economic opportunities are severely constrained by poor transport infrastructures and unreliable electricity power (USAID, 2007). In particular, the oil sector is highly dependent on pipeline shutdown, but this also Even though the country South Sudan came into existence in 2011, if there is information available specifically for South Sudan also before 2011, it has been included in the profile. 4 Irrigation in Africa in figures - AQUASTAT Survey - 2015 restricts irrigated agriculture, as well as other agricultural processing or storage units that could strengthen the agricultural sector. Agriculture has indeed a great potential, however it consists mostly of hand-cultivated subsistence farming under rainfed conditions on household plots of less than two hectares (FAO et al., 2011), as well as livestock-rearing. Only 20 percent of cereal farming is mechanized. The Green belt zone, in Western and Central Equatoria states, is the only area where tropical crops can be grown without irrigation (Yongo-Bure, 2007). The livestock population includes cattle, sheep and goats, which are raised in the more arid and semi-arid zones such as Eastern Equatoria. Livestock, estimated at 38.4 million heads in 2010 for the 10 Southern States only, which coincide with the present South Sudan, are either nomadic pastoralist or mixed crop-livestock systems and are a major source of livelihoods, especially in the floodplains of the Upper Nile and the semi-arid pastoral areas.