South Sudan became the world's youngest nation on July 9, 2011, following a referendum held in January 2011 where 98.83% of voters chose independence from Sudan. The country ended the Second Sudanese Civil War through the Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in 2005, which granted autonomy and set the referendum timeline. Six decades of conflict, starting with the First Sudanese Civil War from 1955 to 1972, defined the territory before statehood. What exists now is a nation constructing itself while simultaneously managing the aftermath of a civil war that began in December 2013 and formally ended with a peace agreement in 2020. The tourism infrastructure that exists in most countries does not exist here.
The Sudd is the world's largest tropical wetland, covering between 30,000 and 57,000 square kilometers depending on seasonal flooding. The White Nile flows through this swamp, losing roughly half its water volume to evaporation. The ecosystem supports the second-largest wildlife migration on the African continent, involving approximately 1.3 million white-eared kob, tiang antelope, and mongalla gazelle moving between the floodplains and Boma Plateau. This migration was documented through aerial surveys conducted by the Wildlife Conservation Society between 2007 and 2010, revealing numbers that had survived two civil wars because the region was too remote and dangerous for poaching operations. The migration rivals the Serengeti in scale but occurs in a country with almost no tourist infrastructure.
Boma National Park covers 22,800 square kilometers and contains populations of African elephant, lion, Nubian giraffe, and the endangered Nile lechwe. Bandingilo National Park, at 10,000 square kilometers, serves as the dry season concentration area for the migration. Southern National Park extends across 23,000 square kilometers along the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. None of these parks currently function as protected areas with ranger patrols, entrance systems, or visitor facilities. The Wildlife Conservation Society maintains research presence in some areas. Poaching has accelerated since 2013, with organized groups operating from neighboring countries.
The Imatong Mountains reach 3,187 meters at Mount Kinyeti, the highest point in South Sudan, supporting montane forest ecosystems distinct from the surrounding savanna. The Boma Plateau sits at elevations between 1,000 and 2,000 meters, creating grassland habitat that drives the wildlife migration. These highlands receive between 1,000 and 1,400 millimeters of annual rainfall, while the Sudd receives between 700 and 900 millimeters. The variation creates ecological zones from tropical forest in Equatoria region to Sahel-transition woodland in the north. The terrain remains largely unmapped at scales useful for independent travel.
Juba had an estimated population between 300,000 and 400,000 at independence in 2011. Current estimates range from 400,000 to 525,000, though no census has been completed. The city serves as the only significant entry point, with Juba International Airport receiving commercial flights from Addis Ababa, Nairobi, Entebbe, Khartoum, Cairo, and Dubai. The Juba Bridge, completed in 1977, crosses the White Nile as the only bridge connection in the country. Paved roads extend approximately 60 kilometers from Juba. The remainder of South Sudan's estimated 90,000 kilometers of roads are unpaved tracks impassable during rainy season from April through November.
The Dinka constitute approximately 35.8% of the population according to estimates preceding the planned 2008 census that was never completed. The Nuer represent roughly 15.6%, followed by Shilluk, Azande, Bari, and more than 60 other ethnic groups speaking languages from Nilotic, Ubangian, and Central Sudanic families. English serves as the official language, but Juba Arabic functions as the lingua franca in urban areas and among different ethnic groups. Dinka and Nuer dominate in their respective regions. This linguistic fragmentation compounds the absence of national infrastructure.
John Garang founded the Sudan People's Liberation Movement and Army in 1983, leading the Second Sudanese Civil War until his death in a helicopter crash on July 30, 2005. The crash occurred in southern Sudan three weeks after he became First Vice President of Sudan under the peace agreement. Salva Kiir Mayardit succeeded Garang and became South Sudan's first president at independence. Riek Machar, from the Nuer ethnic group, served as vice president until political tensions erupted into civil war on December 15, 2013. The conflict killed an estimated 383,000 people according to a London School of Economics study released in 2018. More than four million people were displaced internally or fled as refugees.