Software Industry Practice in Africa: Case Study Sudan

The software development industry has a vital role in the economic development of Africa. However, there are limited studies investigating the software industry in Africa. In this work, we attempt to close this gap through the study of the software industry in Sudan (East Africa). This paper presents a questionnaire based survey exploring the demographics, software development practices and risks associated with the Sudanese software industry. Approximately 100 practitioners participated in this study representing the major software companies operating in Sudan. The key challenges identified in this work were the insufficient description of software development procedures, communication methods and customer relations within companies. The results of this study contribute to the diversity of international research in software engineering practice and provide necessary data for researchers in ICT in Africa.