The Kafia Kingi () area is a mineral-rich region on the border between

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic ...

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 Con ...

and the

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR; ; , RCA; , or , ) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the southeast, the DR Congo to the south, the Republic of the C ...

. It is disputed between South Sudan and Sudan. The area was due to be given to South Sudan under the terms of the 2005

Comprehensive Peace Agreement The Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA, ar, اتفاقية السلام الشامل, Ittifāqiyyah al-salām al-šāmil), also known as the Naivasha Agreement, was an accord signed on January 9, 2005, by the Sudan People's Liberation Moveme ...

which required use of the Sudan "north–south line" as of 1 January 1956. It was not until 1960 that the Kafia Kingi area was transferred north of that line and added to Darfur. Sudan controls all or most of this area today, though at times since independence South Sudan forces have briefly controlled large portions. Almost all of Kafia Kingi (except a southern portion south of the Umblasha River) is within the borders of the Sudanese Radom National Park, a

biosphere reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

, of which two-thirds are also within the borders of Kafia Kingi, while another one-third of the National Park is within the Sudanese region of South Darfur. Warlord

Joseph Kony Joseph Rao Kony (likely born 1961) is a Ugandan militant who founded the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a Christian fundamentalist organization, designated as a terrorist group by the United Nations Peacekeepers, the European Union and vario ...

is thought to be hiding in Kafia Kingi. The Kafia Kingi region is a known haven for ivory smugglers. Congolese ivory is frequently held in Kafia Kingi before being taken north into Darfur.

References

{{reflist Populated places in South Darfur Populated places in Western Bahr el Ghazal Territorial disputes of South Sudan Territorial disputes of Sudan