By Tom Evans; Sr. Writer; AMANPOUR.

(CNN) - Amid new questions about the credibility of next week's elections in Sudan, a former U.S. State Department official accused the Obama administration of wasting time on a new policy on the bitterly divided nation.

"They spent almost a year developing this notion of a 'new policy' toward Sudan," Jendayi Frazer, assistant secretary of state for African affairs under President George W. Bush, said Wednesday in an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour.

"And they came up with this notion of 'carrots and stick' which every administration has. So they wasted almost a whole year on a policy review, and yet they are still talking with many different voices."

She said the Obama administration is sharply divided on how to tackle Sudan, the largest country in Africa, and one that is rich in oil reserves.

"I think the biggest challenge for the Obama administration is they're divided. You see very mixed signals coming out from the special envoy (to Sudan) versus the secretary (of state)."

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