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15 January 2011
Last updated at 16:21 ET
Voting has ended in Sudan in the south's historic independence referendum, with a large turnout for the week-long poll.
The vote is widely expected to see the south choose overwhelmingly for separation from the north.
The referendum was a condition of a 2005 peace deal which ended a 21-year civil war.
Official results of the vote - which was largely peaceful - are not expected until early next month.
'We are free' Polling stations closed in Sudan at 1800 local time (1500 GMT) on Saturday.
Southern Sudanese Christian Bishop Paul Yugusk played what he called the "final trumpet" on the rule by the mainly Muslim north.
"I chose this day to close it with a trumpet, and this trumpet marking... the end of slavery, domination, and - overall - we are free," the bishop said in the southern capital of Juba.
Turnout was extremely high for the vote, with the referendum commission chairman saying that by the close of polling on Friday some 83% of the registered voters cast their ballots in the south.
Many of those were in the first few days, with giant queues snaking for hundreds of metres around polling stations.
However, in recent days it was a quieter affair, with just a few people trickling in, the BBC's Peter Martell in Juba reports.
About 53% of the eligible voters turned out in the north.
Reports from international observers have been almost universally optimistic, saying that so far the vote has been free and fair.
That has come as massive relief to the south, for whom this vote means so much, our correspondent says.
A senior official from Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's National Congress Party said on Saturday that Khartoum would accept the outcome of the vote even if it meant partition of Africa's largest nation.
The great divide across Sudan is visible even from space, as this Nasa satellite image shows. The northern states are a blanket of desert, broken only by the fertile Nile corridor. Southern Sudan is covered by green swathes of grassland, swamps and tropical forest.
Sudan's arid northern regions are home mainly to Arabic-speaking Muslims. But in Southern Sudan there is no dominant culture. The Dinkas and the Nuers are the largest of more than 200 ethnic groups, each with its own traditional beliefs and languages.
The health inequalities in Sudan are illustrated by infant mortality rates. In Southern Sudan, one in 10 children die before their first birthday. Whereas in the more developed northern states, such as Gezira and White Nile, half of those children would be expected to survive.
The gulf in water resources between north and south is stark. In Khartoum, River Nile, and Gezira states, two-thirds of people have access to piped drinking water and pit latrines. In the south, boreholes and unprotected wells are the main drinking sources. More than 80% of southerners have no toilet facilities whatsoever.
Throughout Sudan, access to primary school education is strongly linked to household earnings. In the poorest parts of the south, less than 1% of children finish primary school. Whereas in the wealthier north, up to 50% of children complete primary level education.
Conflict and poverty are the main causes of food insecurity in Sudan. The residents of war-affected Darfur and Southern Sudan are still greatly dependent on food aid. Far more than in northern states, which tend to be wealthier, more urbanised and less reliant on agriculture.
Sudan exports billions of dollars of oil per year. Southern states produce more than 80% of it, but receive only 50% of the revenue, exacerbating tensions with the north. The oil-rich border region of Abyei is to hold a separate vote on whether to join the north or the south.
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The vote is widely expected to see the south choose overwhelmingly for separation from the north.
The referendum was a condition of a 2005 peace deal which ended a 21-year civil war.
Official results of the vote - which was largely peaceful - are not expected until early next month.
'We are free' Polling stations closed in Sudan at 1800 local time (1500 GMT) on Saturday.
Southern Sudanese Christian Bishop Paul Yugusk played what he called the "final trumpet" on the rule by the mainly Muslim north.
"I chose this day to close it with a trumpet, and this trumpet marking... the end of slavery, domination, and - overall - we are free," the bishop said in the southern capital of Juba.
Turnout was extremely high for the vote, with the referendum commission chairman saying that by the close of polling on Friday some 83% of the registered voters cast their ballots in the south.
Many of those were in the first few days, with giant queues snaking for hundreds of metres around polling stations.
However, in recent days it was a quieter affair, with just a few people trickling in, the BBC's Peter Martell in Juba reports.
About 53% of the eligible voters turned out in the north.
Reports from international observers have been almost universally optimistic, saying that so far the vote has been free and fair.
That has come as massive relief to the south, for whom this vote means so much, our correspondent says.
A senior official from Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's National Congress Party said on Saturday that Khartoum would accept the outcome of the vote even if it meant partition of Africa's largest nation.
The great divide across Sudan is visible even from space, as this Nasa satellite image shows. The northern states are a blanket of desert, broken only by the fertile Nile corridor. Southern Sudan is covered by green swathes of grassland, swamps and tropical forest.Sudan's arid northern regions are home mainly to Arabic-speaking Muslims. But in Southern Sudan there is no dominant culture. The Dinkas and the Nuers are the largest of more than 200 ethnic groups, each with its own traditional beliefs and languages.The health inequalities in Sudan are illustrated by infant mortality rates. In Southern Sudan, one in 10 children die before their first birthday. Whereas in the more developed northern states, such as Gezira and White Nile, half of those children would be expected to survive.The gulf in water resources between north and south is stark. In Khartoum, River Nile, and Gezira states, two-thirds of people have access to piped drinking water and pit latrines. In the south, boreholes and unprotected wells are the main drinking sources. More than 80% of southerners have no toilet facilities whatsoever.Throughout Sudan, access to primary school education is strongly linked to household earnings. In the poorest parts of the south, less than 1% of children finish primary school. Whereas in the wealthier north, up to 50% of children complete primary level education.Conflict and poverty are the main causes of food insecurity in Sudan. The residents of war-affected Darfur and Southern Sudan are still greatly dependent on food aid. Far more than in northern states, which tend to be wealthier, more urbanised and less reliant on agriculture.Sudan exports billions of dollars of oil per year. Southern states produce more than 80% of it, but receive only 50% of the revenue, exacerbating tensions with the north. The oil-rich border region of Abyei is to hold a separate vote on whether to join the north or the south.Webmaster Forum | SEO Forum | Coding Forum | Graphics Forum</b>