Georgetown professor launches book about Sudan

Harry Verhoeven, professor of Comparative Politics and International Relations at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in Qatar, recently attended a launch of his book titled “Water, Civilization and Power in Sudan: The Political Economy of Military-Islamist State Building” at a book launch event in Washington, D.C. In an original and convincing study after a decade of research spent in Sudan working on his book, professor Verhoeven links environmental factors, development, and political power to tell a story about the Islamic revolution and the strategic stakes of the Sudan conflict by examining the relationship between these factors.

Relaying on in-depth interviews with many insiders and decision-makers inside and outside Sudan, the book underlines a set of linkages and tells the story of one of Africa's most ambitious state-building projects in the modern era. Professor Verhoeven’s study reaches deep into the complex issues of water, religion, and political power that have shaped the Islamist regime in the capital city of Sudan and reveals both its ambitions and its failures. “This book is an exercise in empathy. It essentially tries to tell a story of the 2nd Islamic revolution of the modern times and aims to document a trajectory of the people of Sudan,” said professor Verhoeven commenting on his new book. “I wanted to develop a better understanding of an important event in Islamic modern history, to find out why a country that has so much natural and cultural beauty and should be proud of its heritage is so extremely violent and divided,” he said.

Outside academia, professor Verhoeven has worked in northern Uganda, Sudan, India and Democratic Republic of Congo and is an expert on African studies, economic development, food security in the Middle East, and international conflict resolution.