Final results: South Sudan votes in favour of independence

South Sudan voted overwhelmingly to declare its independence in final results of a referendum made public on Monday, opening the door to Africa's newest state and a fresh period of uncertainty for the fractured region.

A total of 98.83 percent of voters from Sudan's oil-producing south chose to secede from the north in last month’s vote.

“I think there’s going to be a very big celebration across the whole of Southern Sudan,” says John Ashworth, Advisor to the Sudan Ecumenical Forum. “Next steps will include making some technical changes to the interim constitution.”

Disputes remain over the drawing of the border – along which much of the oil wealth lies -- as well as citizenship, the division of precious Nile water and oil revenues, and the major stumbling block of Abyei, a region claimed by both sides.

Ashworth expressed concern about the possibility of violence breaking out over transitional areas like Abyei. He said that if the status of such areas is not sorted out, an insurgency could break out and spread.

Meanwhile the Catholic Church is maintaining an important role in the constitutional process.

“The Church is also going to be involved in helping the government be a good government,” Ashworth said. “You can be a watchdog or a guide dog, and the Church I think has taken the attitude it will be a guide dog. It will try to accompany and lead and advise the government of Southern Sudan in the right direction, rather than just sitting back and criticizing and barking when anything goes wrong.”

Listen to John Ashworth’s full interview with Kelsea Brennan-Wessels: