Eastern Nile was a state in

South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the ...

that existed between 2 October 2015 and 14 January 2017 when it was divided into Central Upper Nile State and Northern Upper Nile State. It was located in the

Greater Upper Nile The Greater Upper Nile is a region of northeastern South Sudan. It is named for the White Nile, a tributary of the Nile River in North and East Africa. History The Greater Upper Nile region seceded from the Republic of Sudan on 9 July 2011 alo ...

region and it was part of the former states of Upper Nile and

Jonglei Jonglei State is a state of South Sudan with Bor as its centre of government and the biggest city. Jonglei state comprises nine counties: Bor, Akobo, Ayod, Uror, Duk, Nyirol, Pigi, Twic East, and Fangak. Jonglei State is the largest st ...

. The state bordered the states of Eastern Bieh,

Latjoor Latjoor was a state in South Sudan that existed between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020. It was located in the Greater Upper Nile region and it bordered Eastern Nile to the north, Eastern Bieh to the south, and Ethiopia to the east. On 2 Oct ...

, Western Bieh, Western Nile, and the country of

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the Er ...

to the east.

History

Before Eastern Nile State was formed, its territory was in the former states of Upper Nile and

. On 2 October 2015, President

Salva Kiir Salva (Latin for "Save") may refer to: People *Francisco Salva Campillo (1751-1828), Spanish scientist * Ramon d'Salva (born 1921), Filipino actor * Héctor Salva (1939-2015), Uruguayan football midfielder *Salva Kiir Mayardit (born 1951), South ...

issued a decree establishing 28 states in place of the 10 constitutionally established states. The decree established the new states largely along ethnic lines. A number of opposition parties and civil society groups challenged the constitutionality of the decree. Kiir later resolved to take it to parliament for approval as a constitutional amendment. In November the South Sudanese parliament empowered President Kiir to create new states. Chol Thon Balook was appointed Governor on 24 December 2015. On 14 January 2017 Eastern Nile State was divided into Central Upper Nile State and Northern Upper Nile State.

Geography

Eastern Nile State was located in the

region and the state borders the states of

and Eastern Bieh to the south, Western Bieh and Western Nile to the west, and the country of

to the east.

Administrative divisions

When Eastern Nile State was formed, the state split even further into a total of 11 counties. These counties are Malakal County, Renk County, Melut County, Sobat West County, Sobat East County, Akoka County, Koma County, Atar County, Khor Fulus County, Northeast Maban County, and Southeast Maban County. Each county was also given a county commissioner.

Towns and cities

The capital of the state was

Malakal Malakal is a city in South Sudan. It is the capital of Upper Nile State, South Sudan, along the White Nile River. It also serves as the headquarter of Malakal county and it used to be the headquarter of Upper Nile Region from 1970s to late 1990s ...

. Malakal's population in 2015 was 160,765. Malakal is the 2nd largest in the country. Other towns and villages in the state of Eastern Nile include Daga Post,

Doleib Hill Doleib Hill was a mission station established by the American Inland Mission in southern Sudan, located approximately south of the city of Malakal, on the northern bank of the Sobat River, then in the former Upper Nile province of Sudan, the p ...

, Melut ''(located in Melut County)'', and Renk ''(located in Renk County)''.

References

{{coord missing, South Sudan Greater Upper Nile States of South Sudan