South Sudan’s Kiir promises accountability and transparency to promote investments
December 14, 2011 (WASHINGTON) – The President of the newly established state of South Sudan Salva Kiir promised prospective investors that his government is determined to take all measures that would improve good governance.
“Furthermore, I have issued a decree that all senior government officials should declare their resources by the end of January 2012; in absence of which they will be investigated. We are also considering obtaining membership in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative” he added.
“As part of strengthening governance we shall also ensure that the environment is safe and secure for development and investment to take place” the Southern Sudanese leader stressed.
U.S. officials say the conference will introduce South Sudan both to aid organizations and to private companies, seeking to jump start the economy and open up new opportunities, particularly in the oil and agriculture sectors.
South Sudan is among the poorest countries in the world in terms of infrastructural development and services delivery to its people, though it has economic potentials in agriculture and oil, among others. It has stepped up efforts to attract foreign direct investment in order to address the challenges and meet expectations of the people.
The U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the conference highlighted difficulties facing South Sudan.
“South Sudan is one of the least developed nations on earth. It faces a difficult, mutually dependent relationship with its northern neighbor. It is confronting continued violence in that border region; deficits in health, education, infrastructure, governance, the rule of law; ethnic tensions; a combustible mix of extreme poverty, natural wealth, and fragile institutions” she said.
Clinton also warned South Sudan that it should work to responsibly manage its oil wealth.
“We know that it will either help your country finance its own path out of poverty, or you will fall prey to the natural resource curse, which will enrich a small elite, outside interests, corporations and countries, and leave your people hardly better off than when you started,” she said.
“South Sudan survived by being born, but it does need intensive care,” Clinton said. “And it needs intensive care from all of us.”
South Sudan officially became an independent nation last July after its citizens voted in a referendum earlier this year overwhelmingly in favor of splitting from the north. The exercise was stipulated as part of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) which ended more than two-decades of civil war.
However, the new state is faced my immediate challenges of fighting insurgencies, tribal conflicts and negotiating post-secession items with its northern neighbor.
South Sudan is still dependent on Sudan’s oil infrastructure to export its crude to the outside world. The two countries are still at odd on how much fees should be assessed for use of this service.
In a related issue, the South Sudan Liberation Movement (SSLM) and South Sudan Democratic Movement (SSDM) fighting the government in Juba released a statement warning U.S. businesses from heading to South Sudan.
“The SSLA and SSDA warn American businesses to exercise caution before rushing to South Sudan which is now at war. No rational businessman or businesswoman could risk investing in a war zone. The American businesses are welcomed to South Sudan after the demise of Salva Kiir’s regime”.
“The facts on the ground speak for themselves and it is very obvious that the situation is not conducive for investment in the South”.
(ST)