Country Details

South Sudan has no stock exchange.

The major cause of the economic crisis is the south's split. South Sudan has most of the discovered oil reserves. Sudan expected to receive a cut of oil profits in exchange for allowing South Sudanese oil to pass through Sudanese oil pipelines that transport the oil to Port Sudan. However, conflict prevented this and the South shut down their oil production. This caused heavy inflation in both countries, an end to fuel subsidies in Sudan, and devaluation of the Sudanese pound. Currently, the black market rate and the official exchange rate for the Sudanese pound to the US dollar aren't the same. Before the South split Sudan was producing slightly less than 100,000 barrels, the government has seriously overestimated its ability to increase production, but never the less there has been an increase. The two Sudans recently signed an agreement on oil transit fees. Sudan is paid 25 dollars per barrel of oil. Oil companies also pay fees to transport the oil from Port Sudan.

The territories of modern South Sudan and the Republic of Sudan were occupied by Egypt under the Muhammad Ali Dynasty, and later governed as an Anglo-Egyptian condominium until Sudanese independence was achieved in 1956. Following the First Sudanese Civil War, the Southern Sudan Autonomous Region was formed in 1972 and lasted until 1983. A second Sudanese civil war soon developed and ended with the Comprehensive Peace Agreement of 2005. Later that year, southern autonomy was restored when an Autonomous Government of Southern Sudan was formed.

South Sudan became an independent state on 9 July 2011, following a referendum that passed with 98.83% of the vote. It is a United Nations member state, a member state of the African Union, of the East African Community, and of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development. In July 2012, South Sudan signed the Geneva Conventions. South Sudan has suffered internal conflict since its independence; as of 2016, it has the second highest score on the Fragile States Index (formerly the Failed States Index).

The now-defunct Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly ratified a transitional constitution shortly before independence on 9 July 2011. The constitution was signed by the President of South Sudan on Independence Day and thereby came into force. It is now the supreme law of the land, superseding the Interim Constitution of 2005.

The constitution establishes a mixed presidential system of government headed by a president who is head of state, head of government, and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. It also establishes the National Legislature comprising two houses: a directly elected assembly, the National Legislative Assembly, and the second chamber of representatives of the states, the Council of States.

John Garang, the founder of the SPLA/M, was the first president of the autonomous government until his death on 30 July 2005. Salva Kiir Mayardit, his deputy, was sworn in as First Vice President of Sudan and President of the Government of Southern Sudan on 11 August 2005. Riek Machar replaced him as Vice-President of the Government. Legislative power is vested in the government and the bicameral National Legislature. The constitution also provides for an independent judiciary, the highest organ being the Supreme Court. The economy of South Sudan is one of the world's most underdeveloped with South Sudan having little existing infrastructure and the highest maternal mortality and female illiteracy rates in the world as of 2011. South Sudan exports timber to the international market. The region also contains many natural resources such as petroleum, iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc, tungsten, mica, silver, gold, diamonds, hardwoods, limestone, and hydropower. The country's economy, as in many other developing countries, is heavily dependent on agriculture. Other than natural resources-based companies, other such organizations include Southern Sudan Beverages Limited, a subsidiary of SABMiller.

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The Sudanese pound is the currency of Sudan. It was also used as currency in South Sudan until finalization of the introduction of the South Sudanese pound. Both Arabic and English names for the denominations appear on the country's banknotes and coins.

The first pound to circulate in Sudan was the Egyptian pound. The late 19th century rebels Muhammad ibn Abdalla (the Mahdi) and Abdallahi ibn Muhammad (the Khalifa) both issued coins which circulated alongside the Egyptian currency. When Anglo-Egyptian rule in Sudan ceased on January 1, 1956 and Sudan became an independent country, a distinct Sudanese currency (the Sudanese pound) was created, replacing the Egyptian pound at par.

The Egyptian pound was subdivided into 100 qirsh. The qirsh used to be subdivided into 40 para, but decimalization following the 1886 Egyptian currency reform established a 1/10 qirsh, which came to be known as a millim. Due to this legacy, the post-1956 Sudanese pound was divided into 100 qirush, subdivided into 10 millims. During 1958-1978 the pound was pegged to the U.S. dollar at a rate of $2.87156 per Sudanese pound. Thereafter, the pound underwent successive devaluations.

The pound was replaced in 1992 by the dinar (SDD) at a rate of 1 dinar = 10 pounds. While the dinar circulated in northern Sudan, in Southern Sudan, prices were still negotiated in pounds, whilst in Rumbek and Yei, the Kenyan shilling was used and accepted more within the transport sectors as well as for hotels/accommodation. According to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the government of the Republic of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, the Central Bank of Sudan (CBOS) shall adopt a program to issue a new currency as soon as is practical during the Interim Period. The design of the new currency shall reflect the cultural diversity of Sudan. Until a new currency has been issued with the approval of the Parties on the recommendations of the CBOS, the circulating currencies in Southern Sudan shall be recognised. The second pound began introduction on 9 or 10 January 2007, and became the only legal tender as of July 1, 2007 It replaced the dinar at a rate of 1 pound = 100 dinars or 1 pound (SDG) = 1000 pounds (SDP).

The third edition of the Sudanese pound was established on 24 July 2011 following the secession of South Sudan from the Republic of Sudan. For a wider history surrounding currency in the region, see The History of British Currency in the Middle East. In 1885, the Mahdi issued silver coins for 10 and 20 qirush and gold 100 qirush. These were followed by issues of the Khalifa in denominations of 10 para, 1, 2, 2½, 4, 5, 10 and 20 qirush. These coins were initially minted in silver in 1885. Over the following eleven years, severe debasement occurred, leading to billion, then silver-washed copper and finally copper coins being issued. The coinage ceased in 1897.

During 1908-1914, a local coinage was issued in Darfur in western Sudan. These were issued under the authority of Ali Dinar and resembled contemporary Egyptian coins. In 1956, coins were introduced in denominations of 1, 2, 5 and 10 millim, 2, 5 and 10 qirush. The millim denominations were struck in bronze, whilst the qirush denominations were in cupro-nickel. The 2, 5 and 10 millim were scallop-shaped, although a round 5 millim was introduced in 1971. The 1 and 2 millim were last struck in 1969, the last 5 millim in 1978. In 1983, brass 1, 2 and 5 qirush, a reduced size 10 qirush and a cupro-nickel 20 qirush were introduced. In 1987, aluminium-bronze 1, 5, 10, 20, 25 and 50 qirush and 1 pound were introduced, with the 25 and 50 qirush square and octagonal in shape, respectively. In 1989, stainless-steel 25 and 50 qirush and 1 pound were issued. This is the general pattern, in addition to these coins there are collector-oriented issues and various oddities.

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Coins in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 20 and 50 qirush were introduced alongside the circulating dinar coins. The Central Bank of Sudan states that the 5 qirush coins are yellow colored (perhaps aluminium-bronze) and the 10 qirush is silver colored (made of stainless steel). The 20 and 50 qirush coins are bi-metallic, with the 20 qirush yellow ringed with a silver colored center and the 50 qirush the opposite. In April 1957, the Sudan Currency Board introduced notes for 25 and 50 piastres, 1, 5 and 10 pounds.[8] Note production was taken over by the Bank of Sudan in 1961. 20-pound notes were introduced in 1981, followed by 50 pounds in 1984 and 100 pounds in 1988.

When introduced on 8 June 1992, the Sudanese dinar replaced the first Sudanese pound at a rate of 1:10. In 2005, the National Public Radio of the United States reported that forces in Southern Sudan were printing pound notes bearing the name "Bank of New Sudan", but there is no such bank. In addition, numbers of the banknotes had duplicate serial numbers. Their legitimacy is questionable.

When introduced on 10 January 2007, the second Sudanese pound replaced the Sudanese dinar at a rate of 1:100. This new currency was mandated by the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed between the Sudanese government and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement to end the country’s 21- year civil war. Deputy Governor Badr-Eddin Mahmoud said the cost to print the new currency was US$156 million.[8] Banknotes of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 pounds were issued.[3] The 1-pound note was replaced by a coin at the end of November 2011.

Banknotes of the third pound are similar in style to those of the second round but with changes in colour scheme, the removal of certain symbols associated with the south and a redrawn map of the country after the secession of the south.