A three-day governor’s forum concluded last week in Northern Bahr el Ghazal State with a commitment to peaceful coexistence and fostering unity among political entities and local communities.

Speaking to Radio Tamazuj soon after the conclusion of the meeting, the Northern Bahr el Ghazal State information minister, Abraham Wol Kom, said that the forum effectively discussed important issues and made resolutions to ensure trust building and understanding among politicians and communities in the state.

“This forum is so significant because it addresses a lot of issues. The discussions, the interactions, and the resolutions are contributing to understanding and trust-building including peacebuilding as well,” Minister Wol explained. “At the beginning, we used to misunderstand each other and there was a lot of misunderstanding because it was not known and was so not clear what exactly a coalition government was, but with various workshops conducted, including this forum, it is clearly understood what the coalition government is.” 

The minister of gender, child, and social welfare, Lucia Kaku Eliseo, said the forum equipped all political post holders on how to strategize service delivery for the people of Northern Bahr el Ghazal.   

“It was a very colorful function and we, especially the constitutional post holders, have been facing a lot of challenges. Some of us did not know how to come up with strategic plans but at least in this forum we learned how to hook for the fish,” Minister Kaku said. “I believe from today onwards there must be great change in the government and we are going to provide for the needs of the people of Northern Bahr el Ghazal State.”

The Aweil Community Based Organization Forum (ACBOF) executive director, Santino Deng Ngong, said that the forum discussed issues that will help the citizens. 

“I am glad to be part of the three-day governor’s forum conducted in Aweil Grand Hotel. In this forum, we discussed a lot of issues that touched our lives. We had the opportunity to share with the coalition government composed of many parties,” Ngong said. 

The UNMISS’ Civil Affairs Division acting team leader in Northern Bahr el Ghazal State, Dawn Dunlop, said the event achieved its goal because all the participants gained the knowledge that they can use to help themselves and the state. 

“Yes, I think the forum went on very well. The ministers, the traditional leaders, and all stakeholders involved showed up for this particular conference because they stayed for the three days to get all the knowledge, to share the priorities, to share the gaps, and to come up with ways forward, commitment and blueprints on what will happen in Northern Bahr el Ghazal in the next two years,’’ Dunlop said.

The forum, which was attended by over sixty delegates, was initiated by the government of Northern Bar el Ghazal State and funded by UNMISS’ Civil Affairs Division.