Speaking during the closing ceremony of a three-day Civil Society Orientation & Advocacy Training workshop on the Peace Agreement in Juba on Friday, Amb. Lt. Gen. Augostino Njoroge said the Agreement has made “modest progress” in its implementation since it was signed in August 2015.

As such, he said the civil society “can do better” to support the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU), JMEC and the other institutions and mechanisms of the Agreement, to deliver on their mandate.

“The Peace Agreement if implemented is a foundational stone upon which sustainable peace can be built in this country. For this to happen, the civil society must collectively and continuously hold the leaders accountable agitate for peaceful resolution of conflicts and dialogue and mobilise the communities and various constituents to participate in governance and development processes,” he said.

He challenged the non-state actors to advocate for the rights of the ordinary citizens, be a watchdog against violation of human rights and educate the population on their rights and responsibilities as citizens.

“A vibrant and constructive civil society voice is critical for the realisation of peace, promotion of good governance, democratisation and the rule of law in any country,” he said.

The three-day workshop that ended on Friday focused on how to collect data for research and use it for advocacy initiatives, and the status of the implementation of the ARCSS. The workshop is about equipping the participants with the knowledge and skills on how to strategize better engagement within the revitalised ARCSS processes in 2018.

The workshop whose participants were drawn from representatives of different Civil Society Organisations in Juba, was organised in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).