Omar al-Bashir

Who is Omar al-Bashir?

Field Marshal Omar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir is the President of Sudan and the head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, he led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi when the country was at the risk of entering a countrywide famine. Since then he has been elected three times as President.

Major projects achieved include the construction of the Merowe Dam; the heightening and lengthening of the Roseires Dam; large expansion in electricity generation; the construction of five new bridges across the River Nile; the construction of a relatively large number of highways and roads compared to previous presidents; drilling oil and building oil refineries and oil pipes; the establishment of 36 new universities; major improvements and expansions in domestic water pipelines and services; the building of an automobile manufacturing industry; the building of an aircraft manufacturing industry; introducing a legal system based on Sharia law; and negotiating a peace agreement with the South.