Sudan is the largest nation state on the continent of Africa, comprising an area equal to the size of Western Europe. It borders 8 neighboring nations.

The White and the Blue Nile Rivers run through Sudan and intersect in the capitol city of Khartoum. Climate varies throughout the country from the humid tropics in the south to the arid desert in the north.

Arab groups make up 40% of the population, living primarily in the north. Other groups include the Nuba, Beja and Nilotes (among them the Dinka, Neuer and Shilluk). Over 100 languages are spoken in the Sudan.

Seventy percent of the Sudanese population is Muslim, 25% is traditional animist and 5% is Christian.

In its early history, the Sudan represented a trade opportunity for Great Britain and for Egypt, both of which fought for control of points along the Nile. This conflict exacerbated the differences between the people of the north, who were primarily Arab and more closely affiliated with Egypt, and the people of the south, who were Christian and more closely affiliated with Britain due to missionary activity. This basic conflict between the Arab-Muslim north and the tribal-Christian south has persisted throughout all of Sudan's modern history and still continues today. Civil war has been a fact of life for most of the Sudanese people since 1956 when Sudan declared its independence from colonial powers.

The civil war in Sudan has taken a tremendous toll on the population. Over 2 million people have been killed since 1983 and millions more have been uprooted, either internally displaced within the south or fleeing to refugee camps along the borders in Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia and Zaire.

There are approximately 28 million people in Sudan. At any given time of the conflict, three million are considered "at risk" of death due to hunger and fighting. Infant mortality rates are 10 times higher than normal in the south. Seventy percent of all children are malnourished.

In addition, land mines also plague the Sudanese people. The US State Department lists Sudan as one of thirteen nations in the world with a "severe land mine crisis," which means that there is one buried mine for every three to five people.

In the late 1980's the United Nations and several non-governmental organizations, including Catholic Relief Services, Church World Service, the Lutheran World Federation, and the Presbyterian Relief and Development Association, launched a major relief campaign to Sudan entitled "Operation Lifeline." This campaign provided some precious respite from war but was eventually overrun by renewed fighting. However, those non-governmental agencies which participated in the Operation have still maintained some connections with the Sudan. In the words of Brian Atwood, director of US-AID, these groups represent "islands of hope" for the Sudanese people, particularly in the south.

In the midst of the civil war in Sudan, some 15,000 Sudanese refugees fled to the U.S. About 9000 of these refugees have organized into a nationwide network known as the Relief Association for South Sudan with several chapters located throughout the country. Gatkuoth Kuich is the director of the network.

RASS intends to support those "islands of hope" still at work on behalf of the Sudanese people. Connections have already been made with three partners. These include:

 1. A base camp for relief and development located in Loki and administered by the Presbyterian Relief and Development Association. This program has already provided 25,000 families with fishing equipment to use on the Nile River, providing displaced Sudanese from the south a means to food production for themselves and their families.

2. A Bible translation project located in Nairobi, Kenya. This project is supported by a variety of denominations and supports the translation and printing of the Christian scriptures into the tribal languages of the south Sudanese people, such as the Neur and the Dinka. The Bibles are printed for about $3 per copy, then shipped to refugee camps along Sudanese borders and to refugee communities within the U.S. Given the high cost of transport both within Sudan and without, the average cost of getting a Bible into the hands of a south Sudanese family is about $10.

3. A goat project in the Kakuma Refugee Camp of Kenya, which is administered by the Lutheran World Federation and Lutheran World Relief. This project reaches out to approximately 5000 orphans and unaccompanied minors in the Kakuma Camp who lost contact with their families while in flight from southern Sudan to Kenya. Goats will be purchased for the children who will be trained to care for the animals for income generation. The project also carries some budget money for craft supplies and musical instruments for the kids.

If you would like to support these projects, you may help RASS in a variety of ways:

1. Please include the Relief Association and the people of Sudan in your public and private prayers.

2. Consider inviting one of the Sudanese refugees affiliated with RASS to come to your church for an adult education class.

3. Provide a charitable gift to RASS: fishing kits cost about $25, Bibles about $10. We are currently waiting for word on the cost of a goat for the Kakuma project which could range anywhere from $100 to $200.

4. Advocate for your congregation to include RASS in its annual budget as a benevolence partner.

If you have any questions, send e-mail to James Kuon or James Ruach or Pastor Nadine Lehr at Our Savior's Lutheran Church, 605-336-2942.