KHARTOUM, Jan. 8 (Xinhuanet) -- The Sudanese government and the main southern Sudan rebel group, Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A), will sign a comprehensive peace agreement Sunday in Nairobi, Kenya, to end a 21-year civil war that claimed over 2 million lives and displaced 4 million others.

    The following are some basic facts about Sudan, the largest country in Africa.

    FULL NAME: The Republic of the Sudan

    CAPITAL: Khartoum

    INDEPENDENCE DAY (NATIONAL DAY): Jan. 1

    HEAD OF STATE: Omar Hassan Ahmed al-Beshir

    GEOGRAPHY: Lying in the northwest of Africa, Sudan is the biggest country in Africa with an area of about 2.5 million sq km.Sudan shares borders with nine countries - Egypt to the north, Libya, Chad and the Central African Republic to the west, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and Kenya to the south, and Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east. The Red Sea takes up 720 km of Sudan's northwest coast and is also home to the Nile. The dry climate and the ecological features make the country vulnerable todroughts, floods and desertification.

    POPULATION: More than 34.4 million (an estimate in 1999). Arabsaccount for 39 percent of the whole population and the rest are black. Arabic is the official language, which is spoken by 60 percent of the population, while English is also in common use. More than 70 percent of the population are Muslims, most of whom are Sunnis and live in the north. Southern residents are chiefly animists. Only 5 percent are Christians.

    HISTORY: Sudan was an Anglo-Egyptian protectorate from 1898 until its independence in 1956. A military regime under the command of Field Marshal Jaafar Nimeiri lasted from 1969 until 1985. A parliamentary system followed (1986-1989) under civilian prime minister Sadeq al-Mahdi, who was overthrown by an Islamist-backed military coup on June 30, 1989 led by General Omar al-Beshir, who is now president. The civil war has been raging since 1983 when southerners revolted against the government's decision to implement Sharia (Islamic law), which is still rigorously applied in the mainly Muslim areas. Northern opposition groups joined the fighting in 1995.

    POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS: A new constitution was adopted in 1998.Since the introduction of multiparty law in January 1999, 17 smallpro-government parties have been authorized, but the main opposition parties have so far refused to present their credentials to be legalized. Beshir has been named the ruling party's candidate for the current presidential election.

    ECONOMY: One of the most underdeveloped countries classified bythe United Nations, Sudan's economy relies heavily on agriculture and farming. According to the International Monetary Fund, which is supervising a 1999-2001 economic program without financing it, Sudan's economy has improved but still needs to cut spending and privatize. The UN has sent food aid to almost 2.4 million Sudanese,notably in the country's south, ravaged by war and famine. Sudan'sprincipal exports are cotton, gum arabic (biggest producer in the world) and sorghum. Since August 1999, Sudan has become an oil exporter. Reserves are estimated at around 3 billion barrels.

    Sudan's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 5.7 percent in 2001, totaling 13.5 billion US dollars. Its GDP per capita was 442 dollars that year. Enditem