South Sudan’s government delegation at the Nairobi peace talks on Wednesday appealed to the Troika (Norway, the United States and Britain) to provide support to enable the country implement the peace agreement and the Tumaini Initiative.
The Tumaini Initiative for South Sudan seeks an inclusive peace process by including the holdout groups that have not signed the 2018 peace agreement. It was launched in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, on 9 May.
Speaking to the media after meeting with ambassadors of Norway and Britain in Nairobi, Minister of Information Michael Makuei said they require generous contributions from international partners, especially the Troika, towards the effective implementation of the revitalized peace agreement.
“They came to meet us so that they know how far we are moving, the achievements we have made, and the objective of this process. We have talked to them and briefed them on the way forward,” Makuei said.
“We have appealed to them as the Troika to support the process and its implementation. We have assured them that we are not negotiating a new agreement but coming up with one that will strengthen the implementation of the current agreement so that we operationalize it and move forward,” he added.
Makuei, who is also the government spokesperson, said the South Sudanese government requires funding to implement the peace process and appeals to the Troika to help the people of South Sudan so that peace and stability can be realized across the country.
The Troika diplomats also met with opposition members, civil society and faith-based groups.
South Sudan has been formally at peace since a 2018 agreement that ended a five-year conflict responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths.
Elections scheduled for last year were postponed to this December, but few preparations are in place. Violence continues in some areas, with some 2 million people displaced and 9 million — 75% of the population — reliant on humanitarian aid, according to the United Nations.