Honors Experiential Learning Project Proposal Form - Research

Basic Information Full Name: Sally UC Email: amkoask@mail.uc.edu Phone: 513-208-7190 College: Carl H. Lindner College of Business Major: Economics Title of Project: A Bad Forced Marriage: South Sudans Struggle for Autonomy Start Date: 6/6/11 End Date: 10/8/11

1. Project Information The world welcomed its youngest nation on July 9th 2011 when South Sudan gained independence from Sudan. This came as a result of a referendum held in January 2011 where 98.8% of the voters voted in favor of secession. The referendum process was generally peaceful - a sharp contrast from Sudans history of civil unrest since the late 1950s, which claimed millions of civilian lives and displaced millions more. The war between the Muslim north and the Christian, animist south completely divided the country: as early as 1972, the South had become a self-governing region. Al Taieb Mustafa, chairman of Sudans Justice and Peace Forum Party the only northern party that was pro-secession, described continued unity of the north and south as a bad forced marriage. Although South Sudans independence rekindled the nations hope of achieving long-awaited peace, it brought with it challenges that threatened the success of the state. The transition to independence is proving difficult for the fledgling state due to its heavy dependence on Sudans infrastructure, and the uncooperativeness of the northern state. Just weeks after independence, the landlocked South Sudan accused Sudan of charging exorbitant fees for the use of her pipelines to export oil. In addition to hostile relations with her northern neighbor, South Sudan must overcome ethnic tensions, poor infrastructure, population displacement, drought and disease among other hurdles, in order to become a prosperous nation. For my honors research project, I will write a research paper that will focus on the key events leading up to the independence of South Sudan, and the challenges that the new country faces in its transition to complete autonomy. Upon completion of my paper, I will present it at the Global Studies Conference at the University of Nebraska, Omaha. This is an annual conference that has been held for the past 34 years and draws scholars in history, economics, international relations and arts, from all over the world. Presenting my research paper at this conference will give me the opportunity to get valuable feedback from professionals who have studied my topic for years. This experience will be important as I engage in more significant research projects in future. 2. Substantial Content and Quality within Research Theme I am writing about a country that is less than one year old. According to a USAID report, one of the major challenges facing South Sudan is the lack of sufficient documentation of important data on the country. In order to reconstruct the history of a South Sudan as a separate entity from Sudan, I will refer to books by experts in Sudanese affairs, who documented the history of the southern Sudan before the region seceded from Sudan. My sources include The First Sudanese Civil War by Sudanese

researcher and author, Scoppas S. Poggo, and The Government they Deserve: the Role of the Elite in Sudans Political Evolution, by Mansour Khalid, a former Foreign Affairs minister of Sudan.
3. Connection to Academic Goals and Theories I am an Economics major, hence this topic directly relates to my field of study. While taking micro and macroeconomics classes in my freshman year, I learned that conflict is a significant factor in the economic development of any country: it impedes the ability of the government to create and enact economic policies, and prevents both countries and their investors from adequately utilizing natural resources to develop industries. Therefore, by researching on the impact of the war in South Sudan, I will get a greater understanding of the implications of war on the countrys economy. By researching on this topic, I will also learn about economic development strategies for developing countries. In future, I want to work as an economic consultant for governments of developing countries. I want to be able to offer guidance on sustainable economic policies to help these countries utilize their resources as best as possible.

4. Initiative, Independence and Creativity My project shows a lot of initiative because, even though my professor, Dr. Erwin Erhardt, typically only invites juniors and seniors to submit proposals for presentations at the Global Studies Conference, I convinced him to make an exception and invite me while I was still a freshman. I will also be organizing my own trip to Nebraska to attend the conference. I chose to write about this topic because there is not much documented information on South Sudan since it is still a new country. I will have to recreate its history from that of its parent country Sudan. Writing about this topic will also give me the opportunity to shed light on a war that is wildly known yet poorly understood. 5. Reflection & Dissemination I will present my paper at the University of Cincinnati Developing and Emerging Nations club. This is a student organization that aims at studying the issues affecting developing nations and creating innovative solutions for those issues. My paper will be a valuable source of information to the group because I will have received important critiques on my presentation from professionals in the fields of Economics and International affairs, at the Global Studies Conference. 6. Advisor: Dr. Erwin Erhardt Department of Economics 1219 Crosley Tower Email: Erwin.erhardt@uc.edu Tel: 513-556-2624