Selected year snapshot
For 1999, the active event in this file is Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Protection Act 1996.
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Current rationale
As of 2025, South Sudan has not enacted its own copyright legislation. The Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Protection Act 1996 (inherited from Sudan) remains the governing copyright law per Article 198 of the Transitional Constitution of South Sudan and Section 35 of the Investment Promotion Act 2009. WIPO continues to list this as the main IP law of South Sudan. However, the full text of Section 14 ('Restrictions on Copyright') — which is the section expected to contain exceptions and limitations relevant to research, private study, fair dealing, and related uses — could not be retrieved via any web search. Without the verbatim statutory text of the exceptions, I cannot determine: (1) whether full-work reproduction is permitted for research; (2) whether sharing/communication is covered; (3) whether the exception is limited to specific users or works; or (4) whether there is a fair dealing, fair use, private use, or TDM provision. The classification must therefore remain AMBIGUOUS based on the inability to access the statutory text itself, not merely uncertainty about interpretation. No amendments to this Act by South Sudan's legislature could be identified via web search. No new South Sudanese copyright act was found.
Exceptions considered
Restrictions on Copyright — full text not retrievable. Expected to contain exceptions and limitations to copyright including potentially private use, quotation, educational use, and/or research provisions, consistent with typical copyright laws in the region modeled on WIPO/Berne frameworks.
Law changes
Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Protection Act 1996
Baseline · Enacted 1996-12-19
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Relevant section: Section 14
Dates: Enacted 1996-12-19
Why this score
South Sudan did not exist as an independent state on 1990-01-01. The territory was part of Sudan. Sudan's Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Protection Act 1996 is the law that was later inherited by South Sudan upon independence in 2011. On 1990-01-01, the applicable copyright law in the territory that would become South Sudan was the pre-1996 Sudanese copyright law. I was unable to retrieve the full statutory text of either the pre-1996 Sudanese copyright law or the full text of the 1996 Act's Section 14 (Restrictions on Copyright) via web search. The WIPO Lex page for the 1996 Act exists but the full text could not be retrieved in a readable form. The WTO document provides only a table of contents confirming that Section 14 is titled 'Restrictions on Copyright' but does not provide the actual text. Without the verbatim text of the exceptions, I cannot classify the color with confidence. The Wikimedia Commons page for South Sudan copyright rules confirms the 1996 Act is the governing law and provides duration information but does not reproduce the text of Section 14.
Exceptions considered
Restrictions on Copyright — the specific content of this section could not be retrieved via web search. It is expected to contain exceptions and limitations to copyright, potentially including provisions for private use, research, quotation, and/or educational use.
Source links
Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Protection Act 1996
Current law confirmation · undated in this pass
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Relevant section: Section 14
Why this score
As of 2025, South Sudan has not enacted its own copyright legislation. The Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Protection Act 1996 (inherited from Sudan) remains the governing copyright law per Article 198 of the Transitional Constitution of South Sudan and Section 35 of the Investment Promotion Act 2009. WIPO continues to list this as the main IP law of South Sudan. However, the full text of Section 14 ('Restrictions on Copyright') — which is the section expected to contain exceptions and limitations relevant to research, private study, fair dealing, and related uses — could not be retrieved via any web search. Without the verbatim statutory text of the exceptions, I cannot determine: (1) whether full-work reproduction is permitted for research; (2) whether sharing/communication is covered; (3) whether the exception is limited to specific users or works; or (4) whether there is a fair dealing, fair use, private use, or TDM provision. The classification must therefore remain AMBIGUOUS based on the inability to access the statutory text itself, not merely uncertainty about interpretation. No amendments to this Act by South Sudan's legislature could be identified via web search. No new South Sudanese copyright act was found.
Exceptions considered
Restrictions on Copyright — full text not retrievable. Expected to contain exceptions and limitations to copyright including potentially private use, quotation, educational use, and/or research provisions, consistent with typical copyright laws in the region modeled on WIPO/Berne frameworks.