South Sudan will require over US$433 million to conduct General Elections in December 2026, a government official has revealed.
Cabinet Affairs Minister Dr Martin Elia Lomuro gave the figure during the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC) extraordinary meeting in Juba on Wednesday.
“The total budget required by all election institutions stands at US$43,433,760,362. The High-Level Standing Committee will continue to engage these institutions to reduce the budget to an affordable amount,” said Lomuro.
He said the parties to the 2018 peace deal had agreed to fund the elections.
The Minister said there would be strict accountability to save more money for the planned elections.
“We want to make sure most, if not all the money, comes through the agreement. We will adopt austerity measures, including cutting down on infrastructure projects,” he said.
“We will implement strict and prompt accountability measures on dealing with the finances and are confident we can approach the community to provide assistance and hope to get a positive response,” the Minster further said.
He disclosed that the security sector was asking for $133 million to complete the pending tasks. The National Security Commission required $43 million, out of which $800,000 had already been paid to implement its tasks.
The Political Parties Council demanded $33,425,237, of which $5 million has already been paid in SSP, he said.
The Bureau of Statistics said conducting the census required $100 million, Lomuro disclosed.
The Representative of the Business Community at the peace monitoring body, Yar Manoa, demanded accountability for the funds used in the implementation of the 2018 peace deal.
“You have failed to give us how much money was spent in the last three years. You asked for an extension of the roadmap and we gave you, but you did not provide the accountability. There was no auditing done with the Auditor General,” said Manoa.
“Today, you were talking about figures, a lot of money being spent in the last years but still you gave us figures amounting to billions of dollars.”
Last week, South Sudan’s transitional government postponed the December 2024 general elections until December 2026, citing a lack of preparedness.
This is the second time the country, which gained independence in 2011, is postponing elections and extending a transitional period that started in February 2020.