Photo Essay: Southern Sudan Referendum

For 22 years, Sudan suffered one of the most devastating civil wars in Africa. The Government of Sudan, based in the north, fought against the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army, based in the south. The war left an estimated 2 million dead and some 4 million displaced.

The two sides officially ended the war in 2005 and signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). The CPA laid out milestones-a census, elections, popular consultations in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states, and a referendum allowing southerners to choose whether the region will remain unified with the north or secede to form an independent country.

From January 9 to 15, 2011, southern Sudanese cast their ballots in the referendum at polling sites across Sudan and in eight other countries. More than 3.6 million people voted in Sudan, and nearly 60,000 voted in eight countries that have large populations of southern Sudanese, including the United States.

USAID has played a key role in supporting this historic referendum process, including with expert technical assistance, the purchase and delivery of voter registration books, cards, and training manuals, providing polling kits, conducting voter education to inform voters about the process, helping domestic organizations to observe the process, and supporting independent international observation of the process.