HonourableMinisters, 

Excellencies, 

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good morning.

1.   I wish to start my statement by expressing profound sorrow at the passing on of H.E Chris Mburu the Kenyan ambassador to South Sudan, on Sunday 16thFebruary. On behalf of RJMEC, I wish to extend our condolences to his family, friends, the government and people of the Republic of Kenya. The RJMEC family has indeed lost an exemplary member, who devoted his time supporting the RJMEC in the discharge of its mandate. Wewill dearly miss him.

2.  I would like to commend H.E Salva Kiir Mayardit President of the Republic of South Sudan for the compromise he made on the 15thof February to revert the number of States to 10 as outlined in his letter to IGAD dated 15thFebruary 2020. In that regard, I applaud the leadership of IGAD and the regional Special Envoys for the role they played in helping the Parties to break the deadlock on the number and boundaries of states.  I urge the people of South Sudan, to welcome this decision, which will allow the formation of the RTGoNU in a timely manner and on a solid foundation.

3.  I further commend the Transitional National Legislative Assembly for ratifying the Constitutional Amendments Bill No. 6 (2020) as amended, and I am pleased to report that it has already been assented to by the President of the Republic of South Sudan. The Amended Constitution now provides the legal basis for the formation of the RTGoNU.

4.   The 100 days extension of the Pre-Transitional period ends on the 21stof February, and this meeting is the final opportunity to truly take stock of the status of implementation. At our last meeting, I informed you of my concern that two critical Pre-Transitional tasks were still outstanding i.e. the number of states and their boundaries as well as the training and redeployment of the Necessary Unified Forces. I am pleased to report that with the issue of the number of states and their boundaries resolved, we are now left with that of the unification of forces.

5.   In my statement today, I will highlight the status of implementation of the pending Pre-Transitional tasks, since our last monthly meeting, relating to the security arrangements, outline some recurring issues, and I will then conclude with my recommendations on the way forward. 

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

6.   Firstly, on the unification of forces, CTSAMVM reports that significant progress has been made in moving personnel to the designated Training Centres, where at least 40,000 troops are currently assembled. Preliminary training activities are ongoing. So too is screening, which I witnessed recently in Rajaf Training Centre. Furthermore, at the Gorom training centre, I witnessed the assembly of 3339 trainees for the VIP Protection Force. However,training in accordance with the unification module is yet to start. JTSC should release this training module with immediate effect. 

7.   The unification process has been impeded by challenges including insufficient food, vehicles, medicines, shelter, and storage for food and weapons, and the lack of resources to cater for the special needs of female combatants and instructors. That said, I understand conditions across all the Training Centres are changing for the better. I expect to hear shortly from the JTSC on the status of screening and training, and in particular, I would like to hear when the training will commence in conformity with the unification module. 

8.   It is worth pointing out that overall, I found the morale and discipline among the trainees to be commendably high, in contrast to the conditions and the challenges at the training centres, which I mentioned earlier. Provision of basic needs such as clean water, soap, dignity packs, and the digging of pit latrines would go a long way towards improving the overall health and wellbeing of the trainees.  I urge the mechanisms responsible to address these challenges.  

9.   I am also concerned that cantonment sites may be closed or abandoned prior to the DDR transit sites being established. There must be a plan in place to deal with those personnel who fail to pass screening, those who do not complete training, or elect to go for reintegration into their communities.  At this stage it is not clear how this is going to be managed. I expect to receive an update from the JDB and the DDR Commission in this regard.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

10.    While I am pleased to note that the permanent ceasefire continues to hold across the country, I am concerned about the occupation of 22 civilian buildings by the government forces. In that regard, I have written to the Chief of Defense Forces of the SSPDF reminding him that this is a violation of the R-ARCSS and requested him to ensure that all the occupied civilian buildings are vacated immediately. I expect to hear from the CDF at this meeting about his efforts to comply with this requirement.

11.       As many of us may know, there have been discussions in Rome under the auspices of the Sant’Egidio organisation with a view to bring the hold-out groups into the peace process. It was agreed at the most recent Rome meeting to allow the South Sudan Opposition Movements Alliance (SSOMA) to become a member of CTSAMVM and to continue political dialogue under the auspices of Sant’Egidio and IGAD.We should welcome this development. 

12.       I am pleased to say that the issue of Maiwut clashes has now been resolved, with the Parties to the conflict agreeing to a permanent ceasefire and committing to a peaceful resolution. CTSAMVM is however verifying details of violations during the conflict and will submit a report to IGAD and to RJMEC in due course.

13.       In my address to the Council of Ministers on the 8thof February, I appealed that the region, the international community, Partners and Friends of South Sudan speak with one voice in support of the peace process in South Sudan. I am pleased to see that this call was heeded in the IGAD Heads of State and Government communiqué of 9thFebruary, and I urge all of us to take this appeal seriously.  

14.       Finally, it is clear that all must prepare for the formation of R-TGoNU. Accordingly, I would like to highlight the fact that in addition to the unification of forces mentioned previously, the following important Pre-Transitional tasks, have not yet been completed.

a)   enactment by the TNLA of the security laws;  

b)  submission of the Parties nominees for the Transitional National Legislative Assembly to the NCAC; and

c)   allocation of ministerial portfolios to the various Parties. 

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

15.       On the 18thof February, I and the IGAD Special Envoy for South Sudan, Amb Wais, were invited to Khartoum by IGAD Chairperson for consultations. We had the opportunity to discuss recent developments in the implementation of the R-ARCSS, and the current situation and necessary preparatory steps towards the formation of the RTGoNU.

 16.       I can report that:

a.    Sudan as the IGAD Chair is fully seized of the situation in South Sudan and is discussing with other IGAD leaders on necessary steps to support the immediate formation of RTGoNU;

b.   The President of Sudan has promised to continue supporting the implementation of the Peace Agreement; and 

c.    The Chairman and the other IGAD leaders are in the process of preparing a roadmap towards the formation of the RTGoNU. The proposed roadmap will highlight key tasks, and necessary steps towards the formation of the RTGoNU as provided for in the Agreement. We hope to receive this roadmap as soon as it is ready.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

17.       I would like to close with my recommendations for the way forward. 

a)   that the unification of forces continues, with particular emphasis on expediting screening, training and redeployment of the Necessary Unified Forces;

b)  ensure that the administration for trainees and logistics support to the training centres is improved;

c)   that the DDR Commission is empowered and funded so as to effectively deliver on its mandate;  

d)  that the Government of the Republic of South Sudanprovide the necessary funding to the Security Mechanisms, to enable continued progress in the unification of forces, subject to the principles of transparency and accountability;  

e)   that the international community, Partners and Friends of South Sudan continue to support the full implementation of the Revitalized Peace Agreement; and

f)    that the region, the international community, Partners and Friends of South Sudan speak with one voice in support of the peace process.

18.       In closing, and as we are approaching the date for the establishment of the RTGoNU, I call on the Parties to capitalise on the gains made since the signing of the R-ARCSS on the 12thSeptember 2018, and continue to build towards a lasting and sustainable peace in South Sudan.

19.       I wish you fruitful deliberations.

Thank you.