Moving towards Sudan's referendum on southern sovereignty

Now the elections in Sudan are over, the focus is shifting to next January's referendum on possible southern independence.

The referendum, like the elections, is a consequence of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, which was signed in 2005 to end a two-decade long North-South civil war.

The CPA also gave the disputed region of Abyei its own referendum on whether to join the South or the North.

Today in Khartoum the Assessment and Evaluation Commission, which monitors the CPA, held a meeting with senior figures from the SPLM and President Bashir's NCP, as well as special envoys for Sudan from around the world.

A lot of the discussions centred on the steps to be taken to get to the referendum.

The BBC's correspondent in Khartoum, James Copnall spoke to the AEC's chairman Derek Plumbly.