South Sudan: Top UN official says economic crisis fuels public frustration in South Sudan

26 Septembre 2017

JUBA, South Sudan, September 26 (Infosplusgabon) - The forthcoming elections in South Sudan must be inclusive, credible and fair, but should also represent the consolidation of a genuine peace process, the United Nations’ top representative in the war-ravaged country has emphasized.

Updating the UN Security Council on the situation in the country, David Shearer, Special Representative for South Sudan and Head of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), said Tuesday that localized conflicts continue to flare, their impact greatly magnified by automatic weapons, and affecting areas outside of the central conflict.

“Across the country, the opposition remains deeply fractured and has suffered significant military setbacks in recent months,” he said. “At the same time, the economic crisis is further fuelling public frustration and undermines the Government’s capacity to deliver governance and services to its people.”

According to Shearer, deep mistrust of the government persists in key strongholds of the SPLA in Opposition despite the recent military gains in those areas by government forces. The mistrust is exacerbated by human rights abuses that fuel the people’s flight into neighbouring countries.

He said, however, the opposition remains deeply fractured and has suffered significant military setbacks in recent months.

“At the same time, the economic crisis is further fuelling public frustration and undermines the Government’s capacity to deliver governance and services to its people. In many cases, civil servants have not been paid for over four months and salaries to security forces are in addition also delayed,” he said.

Regarding the humanitarian situation, he said the UN agencies assess the total number of people in need of aid in South Sudan has risen to 7.6 million.

The recent humanitarian response plan is budgeted at US$ 1.64 billion. So far 66 per cent of that funding has been received, but, Mr. Shearer underscored that without this humanitarian support, thousands of people would simply not survive.

The number of people displaced in South Sudan rose to nearly four million during the first half of this year. Of these, two million have fled to neighbouring countries – Uganda, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya and Democratic Republic of Congo.

FIN/INFOSPLUSGABON/IOL/GABON 2017

© Copyright Infosplusgabon