South Sudan president calls for better regulation of NGOs

April 21, 2015 (JUBA) – South Sudanese president Salva Kiir urged the country’s lawmakers to “urgently” debate and pass a law regulating NGOs assisting thousands of the country’s displaced population.

The president, while speaking at the opening of the country’s national legislative assembly said government needed to supervise operation of NGOs.

“I must be realistic also that there are still many challenges and much work to be done for this [August] house,” Kiir said on Monday.

“In this regard, the current humanitarian crisis in our country and presence of many NGOs in our, this delicate situation requires urgently the NGO bill to be passed as soon as possible,” he added.

The NGO bill, Kiir stressed, shall organise and regulate the work and activities of these various organisations, which are operating without government supervision.

Parliament failed to pass the bill early this year before MPs went for three month recess.

Currently, there are several humanitarian agencies providing food and other basic services to thousands of South Sudanese affected by the country’s 16-month old conflict.

(ST)