The Government of South Sudan, in partnership with the World Bank, on Thursday launched the Accounting Technician Diploma for South Sudan (ATDSS), a new program aimed at strengthening financial management skills and boosting professional capacity in the country.
The Accounting Technician Diploma (ATD) is a professional qualification designed to equip young professionals and civil servants with practical accounting skills required for middle-level roles in finance.
The initiative is part of broader efforts of the Ministry of Finance to reform public financial management and improve accountability.
Speaking during the launch of the program in Juba, Weituy Luony Babouth, the Bank of South Sudan Second Deputy Governor for Administration and Finance, said the launch marked the beginning of a new chapter in the country’s journey towards economic transformation.
“It is a great honor to stand before you today at the launch of the Accounting Technician Diploma for South Sudan. This is not just an academic program. It is a national milestone that represents our collective commitment towards building a stronger, more transparent, and more accountable country,” said Luony. “Today, we mark the beginning of a new chapter in our journey towards economic transformation with the launch of this Accounting Technician Diploma. This initiative represents planting seeds that will grow the accountancy career to develop professionals in the country to help in improving accountability, transparency, and professionalism.”
“This program will also help South Sudan in building strong institutions, supporting economic transformation, empowering youth, and holding integrity and trust because accountancy is the language of trust,” he added.
Luony stated that the program will assist South Sudan in establishing robust institutions, facilitating economic transformation, empowering youth, and promoting integrity and accountability.
“It ensures that every pound collected in taxes, every dollar invested, and every grant received is used wisely and accounted for. Without professional accountants, proper financial reporting and disclosure that can help decision-making may be challenging or handicapped,” he said. “The professional accountants from this program will help the government and viewers of private enterprises, especially the Bank of South Sudan, deal with the challenging macroeconomic environment characterized by extenuating volatility, inflationary pressure, and a structural constant within the financial sector.”
For his part, Charles Undeland, the Country Manager of the World Bank Group, said the program has been designed to address the specific needs of South Sudan.
“The ATDSS is simply a sort of practical competency-based qualification to provide South Sudanese professionals with the necessary accounting and financial management skills that will be useful in both the public sector and government, and then in business and in the private sector,” he explained. “I think today’s launch is particularly important because it is sort of the transition from a program that has been supported with some external resources and with the direct involvement of the World Bank to a program that is under the government and under the government’s ownership and implementation.”
“Of course, the future of South Sudan, the future and the development of human capital skills that will allow the country to develop, is very much in the hands of the South Sudanese, so we very much welcome the ownership and the leadership that is being provided by the government itself,” Undeland added.
Meanwhile, Michael Okuny, Senior Financial Management Specialist at World Bank Group, said the launch represents a significant step toward building the human capital needed to support South Sudan’s economic growth, strengthen public financial management, and enhance accountability across institutions in the country.
“This initiative, supported by the World Bank under the FASE program, reflects a strong commitment to sustainable capacity building in the accounting and finance profession,” he said. “It is about investing in people, equipping them with practical and relevant skills that can immediately contribute to national development.”