The Day After: Southern Sudan Following the January 9, 2011 Vote on Independence

International Relief & Development to Host December 9 Expert Panel on the Future of Southern Sudan After January's Independence Referendum

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is being released by IRD:

What: After decades of civil war, Southern Sudan will vote this coming January on whether to secede from Sudan and create Africa's newest independent state. The ramifications of independence by the geo-strategically critical region remain unclear, but may reverberate far beyond Southern Sudan's borders.  

With one month until the Southern Sudanese head to the polls, International Relief & Development (IRD), a leading development organization specializing in conflict and post-conflict environments with extensive experience in Southern Sudan, will bring together a panel of distinguished regional experts on December 9, 2010 to provide a "before the vote snapshot," and explore the impact of the vote on the future of Sudan.    

Moderated by renowned radio journalist Kojo Nnamdi, the panel will include John Dau, former Southern Sudanese "Lost Boy" and human rights activist, Enrico Carisch, former UN sanctions monitor in Sudan, Andrea Freeman, Program Analyst with USAID's Office of Sudan Programs, and Richard Owens, IRD's Director of Community Stabilization.  

When: Thursday, December 9, 2010

8:00 AM – 10:30 AM

(Breakfast will be served at 8:00 AM. Panel to begin promptly at 8:30 AM.)

Where: National Press Club

First Amendment Room

529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor

Washington, D.C. 20045

Who: Moderator: Kojo Nnamdi, host of The Kojo Nnamdi Show, and The Politics Hour on WAMU, and the Evening Exchange broadcast on WHUT-TV.

Featured Panelists include:

• John Dau, founder and president of the John Dau Foundation, former "Lost Boy" of Sudan and human rights activist
• Enrico Carisch, former UN Sanctions monitor in Sudan, DRC, Somalia and Liberia
• Andrea Freeman, Program Analyst, Office of Sudan Programs, USAID
• Richard Owens, IRD Director of Community Stabilization

IRD is a non-profit humanitarian and development organization dedicated to improving the lives and livelihoods of the world's most vulnerable people. IRD specializes in conflict and post-conflict environments and works in more than 40 countries. With the help of local groups and donors, IRD builds sustainable, community-based programs that address relief, stabilization and development needs in the areas of health, agriculture, infrastructure, emergency response, and governance. For more information on IRD, visit www.ird.org.

SOURCE International Relief & Development