Highlights

© Jose Miguel Calatayu/IRIN,2011

In January 2011, the population in southern Sudan voted overwhelmingly in favour of independence from the north. To help the new country overcome the numerous humanitarian and socio-economic challenges it faces, the Council decided on 23 May to increase the EU's financial assistance.

The Union has allocated 200 million euros to supplement the 85 million euros donated last year. Given the circumstances, external aid will remain crucial for a long time to come. South Sudan will need help to fight extreme poverty, empower local communities and deliver basic social services to the population. The priority sectors for the EU's assistance are yet to be decided, but focus is expected to be on health, education and agriculture.

After decades of internal fighting, more than 98% of southern Sudan voters chose for separation from northern Sudan. The new state has oilfields stretching into the border area with northern Sudan. Some of the richest oilfields lie in Abyei in the central border region, where the situation still gives cause for concern due to the continued dispute between north and south. Definitive boundaries as well as the status of the region and its residents have yet to be agreed. The sharing of oil revenues is another unresolved issue, as are the numerous internally displaced persons and refugees.

South Sudan is expected to formally declare its independence on 9 July 2011. The current leader of the region, Salva Kiir Mayardit, will become the country's first President. He will be head of state of one of the world's poorest and least developed countries, with one of the highest infant mortality rates and the lowest education indicators in the world. Through its comprehensive approach, the EU is showing its readiness to support the new state from its first steps towards independence.

More information:
Press release 
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