MILITARIZATION IN SUDAN - TRENDS AND DETERMINANTS

This article surveys the Ter-ent trends of various militarization indi cators in the Sudan. It shows that the Sudanese army has played apprec iable roles in the national movement and in the postindependence perio d. The military establishment has also played different roles and witn essed big changes under the consequent national governments. However, the variations in the size of the armed forces, arms imports and total military expenditure were significantly influenced by the nature of t he government, threat perceptions and, foremost, by the civil war in S outhern Sudan. Economic conditions did not play any systematic role in determining military allocations in the 1963-1985 period. Considerabl e resources could be released to developmental and economic growth pro jects if the country can achieve peace and political instability.