October 30th 2018 (Nyamilepedia) – South Sudan has been ranked the second most badly governed nation on the continent, Africa, after Somalia by the Mo Ibrahim 2018 Index of African Governance.
South Sudan gained its independence from the neighboring Sudan in July 2011 following a brutal conflict that killed almost 2.5 million people with most of population of what were to be later South Sudan internally displaced and refugees in foreign country.
Two years later, in December 2018, South Sudan descended into civil war following a flare-up of violence at a national convention of the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) party.
The violence later spread to the army and a fighting took place between presidential guards along ethnic lines with Dinka members of the presidential guards supporting President Kiir, an ethnic Dinka, and Nuer supporting former Vice President Dr. Riek Machar.
The fighting let to a massacre against the Nuer ethnic groups in the capital Juba leading to protest from top army commander leading to armed rebellion igniting the ongoing civil war.
Overall, it says, Africa’s countries have struggled to improve their governance in the past 10 years, with South Sudan scoring zero in all the areas of governance.
This, the report stressed, showed that the Africa’s newest nation has not made any progress or improvement in all aspects of the survey, especially last year.
The survey, which spanned over a decade, focused on how each African nation faired in human development, safety and the of rule of law, participation and human rights as well as sustainable economic development aspects.
According to the index, South Sudan is 53rd after Somalia, scoring just 19 points. South Sudan comes almost to the same level with the Central African Republic which is also in a civil strife.
“Key governance areas are not progressing fast enough to keep up with rising demands, and more specifically to answer the growing expectations of Africa’s youth, who are now forming the majority of our continent, and still expected to rise by almost 20% in the next decade,” Mohamed Ibrahim, a British-Sudanese business man who own the foundation said.
He advised that all aspects of governance must be citizen-centered, saying that Rule of Law, Transparency and Accountability are key to progress in governance, and strongly related to improving economic opportunities.
“I hope this Index and its findings can continue to be a useful tool to help strengthen African governance,” he added.
