South Sudan president urges regional support to national dialogue

March 16, 2017 (JUBA)- South Sudan President, Salva Kiir has called on the region to support the country’s national dialogue initiative to achieve peace and stability.

“The national dialogue which we have declared will in fact close some gaps in the peace agreement and we would appreciate if IGAD member countries which played a very important role in the peace process play another role in supporting this process. The support of the region is really important”, President Kiir said on Thursday.

The South Sudanese leader made these remarks after meeting a delegation from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) assembly headed by Adhana Haile. The delegation was accompanied to the presidency by the speaker of South Sudan’s Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA), Anthony Lino Makana.

The meeting, Adhana told reporters shortly after meeting the South Sudan leader, sought to give full support to the national dialogue initiative launched by the latter.

Makana, on his part, appreciated efforts of the IGAD countries in aiding South Sudan peace process, adding that the visit was the second and that the IGAD delegation would go back to their respective countries after having known the position of the government on many issues relating to peace, development and the political situation.

In a related development, Kiir also met with delegation from East Africa Community (EAC) headed by its Secretary General, Liberat Mfumkeko, accompanied to the meeting by the presidential advisor on economic affairs, Aggery Tisa Sabuuni.

The meeting, Sabuuni said, discussed issues on how the region could help the country achieve peace. Also discussed was the structuring of the EAC and what to be done in terms of sending South Sudanese representatives to the regional assembly headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.

(ST)