South Sudan’s government has proposed an increase in funding for its electoral body in the draft 2025/2026 national budget, seen by Radio Tamazuj, as the country prepares for its first-ever general elections later this year.
The draft allocates 134.3 billion South Sudanese pounds (SSP) to the National Elections Commission (NEC), up from 102.4 billion SSP in the previous financial year. Actual spending by the commission in 2024/25, however, stood at just 181.6 million SSP, highlighting a wide gap between planned and disbursed funds.
The NEC, chaired by Professor Abednego Akok Kacoul, is mandated to organise “free and fair elections” and conduct civic education.
The proposed increase is intended to fund key pre-election activities, including the construction of commission offices, procurement of voting materials, voter education campaigns, and the recruitment and training of electoral staff.
According to the budget document, 133.1 billion SSP of the allocation is classified as capital expenditure, largely for infrastructure, land acquisition and specialised equipment. A further 940.4 million SSP is earmarked for goods and services, while 240.2 million SSP is set aside for staff salaries.
The document lists priorities such as infrastructure development, procurement of election equipment and logistical support for polling operations.
The proposed funding boost comes amid mounting international pressure on President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar to ensure that long-delayed elections go ahead as planned in December 2026. The vote is a key provision of a 2018 peace agreement that ended a five-year civil war.
Analysts, however, caution that increased funding alone will not guarantee a credible electoral process, noting that key benchmarks — including inclusive political dialogue on the elections and security arrangements — remain unmet.
The draft budget, which covers multiple government agencies, must be debated and approved by parliament before it can take effect. It was tabled before lawmakers last week by Finance Minister Bak Barnaba Chol.
The proposed budget projects total expenditure of 8.58 trillion SSP against expected revenues of 7.01 trillion SSP, leaving a financing gap of 1.57 trillion SSP.