Juba Meeting Advances Path to National Elections

(JUBA) – South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir Mayardit and leaders of political parties have approved major clauses of the Revitalized Peace Agreement for urgent amendment, in a move aimed at allowing the country to proceed towards national elections.

The decision was reached during an expanded special session of the Presidency held in Juba and chaired by President Kiir. The meeting unanimously endorsed changes to provisions of the peace agreement that leaders say are blocking progress in the electoral process.

The approval follows a communiqué drafted during the previous Presidency meeting, which identified an urgent need to amend sections of the agreement that have made it difficult to organise elections as planned.

Speaking to journalists after the meeting, the Minister of Cabinet Affairs, Dr Martin Elia Lomuro, said the agreed amendments would now go through formal government procedures. “The adopted changes will follow the institutional processes,” Dr Lomuro said.

He explained that the draft amendments will first be presented to the Council of Ministers. After that, they will be submitted to the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission before being tabled before the National Legislative Assembly for debate and final approval.

During the session, members of the Presidency and representatives of political parties repeated their commitment to holding elections next year. Leaders described the vote as an important step towards building an environment that supports stability, development and prosperity in South Sudan.

Officials said that if the amendments are approved by the relevant institutions, they are expected to address challenges that have delayed the electoral process since independence. They believe the changes could place the country on a clearer path towards its first democratic elections since becoming a nation in 2011.

Proposed institutional process for the amendments