KHARTOUM, July 8 (Xinhuanet) -- Sudanese Minister of Finance and National Economy Al-Zobeir Ahmed Hassan said Friday that his country started to implement a peace agreement with the arrival of John Garang, leader of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), in Khartoum.

    Garang arrived in the Sudanese capital Friday afternoon for the first time after two decades of war.

    Zobeir told Xinhua at Khartoum Airport that there will be more economic opportunities after the elimination of the difficult security situation which used to threaten foreign investment.

    He said that a new government in Sudan will provide basic conditions to encourage investment by realizing political stability, national unity and democracy.

    He said the arrival of Garang and his swearing-in as first vice president on Saturday is the beginning of steps toward establishing a real political partnership based on mutual trust to remove negative consequences of the war on the Sudanese people.

    He said that the future of Sudan will be better than the past through political reconciliation.

    Garang will be sworn in on Saturday as first vice president.

    Omar El-Bashir will remain as Sudan's president.

    A civil war in Sudan started in 1983 when the SPLM took up arms to fight for self-determination in the southern part of the country.

    The conflict had reportedly left some 2 million people dead, mostly through war-induced famine and diseases.

    The Sudanese government and the SPLM signed a peace deal in January to end the longest civil war in Africa.

    Carnival mood has gripped the Khartoum capital to welcome the ex-rebel leader following the peace accord. Enditem