Local authorities in the Greater Pibor Administrative Area’s (GPAA) Jebel Boma County said the area has been hit by severe shortages of basic commodities since last week leading to prices sharply increasing.
Acting Jebel Boma County Commissioner David Lokiai Lochakai told Radio Tamazuj over the weekend that they have not been able to receive goods for a week due to security concerns.
“Our goods normally come through Kapoeta in Eastern Equatoria State but due to insecurity incidents between Murle and Taposa, the roads have been blocked from the Eastern Equatoria side. No more goods are coming,” he said. “Imagine a 50 kg bag of flour has now gone to 150, 000 SSP from 70,000 while 20 liters of cooking oil increased from 40,000 to SSP 75,000.”
Meanwhile, Philip Ngachalen Adoro, the GPAA Chamber of Commerce chairperson, acknowledged that they have not been able to supply GPAA with goods and appealed for government intervention.
“This problem is not in Jebel Boma County alone but the entire Greater Pibor due to insecurity along our roads,” he explained. “We now resorted to air transport for which we are charged SSP 2,300 per kilo which is why just 1 kg of maize flour or sugar cost 5,000 SSP. People in Pibor and Jebel Boma are suffering.”
For his part, Abraham Keleng, the GPAA information minister, also decried the dire humanitarian situation across the area and said that they are engaging Eastern Equatoria State authorities to ensure the safe resumption of road transport.
Radio Tamazuj could not immediately reach out to Eastern Equatoria State authorities for comment on this story.
Cattle raids are commonplace among the communities of GPAA and Eastern Equatoria State, with traffic between the two areas often being disrupted by the vice.