Africa

September 2, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The South Sudanese parties Sunday resumed discussions on the final matrix for the implementation of the revitalized agreement for the resolution of the conflict in South Sudan.

On Saturday the mediation divided the parties into three committees and gave them the draft of the implementation matrix.

The first committee will deal with the chapters 1, 3 and 5 while the second panel will discuss the chapters 4, 6, 8 and the third committee was dedicated to the security arrangements and the implementation of the ceasefire agreement.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, the government spokesperson Michael Makuei expressed optimism to conclude quickly the discussions on these documents.

"We are optimistic that we will be in a position to finish the work between today (Sunday) and tomorrow (Monday) so that we will initial these documents," said Makuei.

He said the IGAD foreign ministers will meet after their return from the China-Africa summit which is expected to conclude its works on Tuesday.

The IGAD Council of Ministers will "adopt the agreement and the implementation matrix and thereafter the documents will be presented to the IGAD summit for approval" and the intervenes the final signing of the peace agreement.

The Extra-Ordinary Summit of IGAD Assembly of heads of State and Government will discuss the concerns of the opposition parties and seek to address it with President Salva Kiir directly.

The opposition SSOA and SPLM-IO said they would not take part in the final signing ceremony unless these issues are resolved.

(ST)

August 2, 2018 (JUBA/ADDIS ABABA) – Ethiopia and South Sudan have agreed to form a joint border security force to halt the flow of arms between the two nations.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (R) and President Salva Kiir shake hands in Addis Ababa on 30 May 2018 (Photo ENA)

The agreement between the two countries was signed at the end of a border security meeting in Ethiopia's Gambella town last week.

The Governor of South Sudan's Boma state, David Yau Yau, signed on behalf of the young nation while the President of the Gambella region, Gatluak Tut Khot signed on behalf of Ethiopia.

“There should be a joint security force in the common border between the two states to clear or dismantle the anti-peace elements and illegal business moving around the border areas,” partly reads the signed joint border security document.

The agreement gives Ethiopia the freedom to open a liaison office in Boma State to foster cooperation between the Murle of South Sudan and the Anyuak of Ethiopia, who reside on the common border.

The liaison office would help mitigate the cross-border raids by both sides, according to the agreement the two countries committed to.

Last year, a deadly cross-border raid conducted in Gambella by armed Murle men from South Sudan resulted in the death of over 200 people while more than 100 children were reportedly abducted.

However while some children were returned, others are still missing.

“The government of Boma State in South Sudan should exert more efforts to recover abducted children and cattle that remained at large and return them to Gambella regional state as soon as possible,” further reads the document.

(ST)

September 2, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - Governor of Central Darfur State Mohamed Ahmed Jad al-Sid said the hybrid peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID) would cut its presence in the state in October.

The semi-official Sudan Media Center (SMC) has quoted Jad al-Sid as saying Central Darfur is witnessing full stability in all of its localities.

He said the UNAMID representative in Central Darfur has vowed to cut presence of the Mission in Nirtiti and Mukjar localities in October, pointing the pledge came during a recent meeting between the government of Central Darfur and the Mission.

Last July, the United Nations Security Council unanimously decided to extend for one year the mandate the UNAMID and also to reduce the number of its troops in line with an exit strategy aiming to close the hybrid operation in two years.

However, the 15-member body stressed the drawdown of the mission should be based on progress against related indicators and benchmarks.

The resolution 2429 (2018), which was passed on Friday 13 July, provides to cut the troop strength of the Mission from the current 8,735 to 4,050 personnel and to maintain its police strength at the current level of 2,500 personnel.

According to the terms of the resolution, the mission will shut down its 14 sites in Darfur, except for 13 sites in the Greater Jebel Marra area and transfer its headquarters to Golo.

The decision was based on a joint report by the African Union and the United Nations recommending to close the UNAMID on 30 June 2020 and the total full withdrawal of its troops by December of the same year.

(ST)

September 2, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed to support Sudan to overcome its economic woes announcing his country would provide a 400 mln Yuan grant and a 200 mln Yuan interest-free loan to the East African nation.

The Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir has arrived in Beijing on Saturday to participate in the China-Africa Cooperation Forum (FOCAC). During his meeting with al-Bashir on Sunday, Xi Jinping said his country appreciates the harsh economic conditions that Sudan continued to suffer since the secession of South Sudan.

“China would cooperate with Sudan to overcome these difficulties and challenges,” said Xi Jinping according to the official news agency SUNA He pointed out that they would consider extending the grace period on China's debt to Sudan, saying his government is keen to remove obstacles and create favourable conditions for cooperation between the two countries.

Beijing has complained recently over Sudan's debt arrears that resulted from Khartoum's purchase of China's share of oil produced to cover domestic consumption.

The Chinese President said oil constitutes the backbone for cooperation between the two countries, stressing keenness to promote bilateral relations with Sudan.

China has been Sudan's largest foreign investor, particularly in oil and telecommunications after western firms shunned the East African nation due to conflicts and sanctions.

It has invested more than $20 billion in Sudan mostly in the oil sector during the past two decades. Beijing provides low-interest loans and weapons transfers in return for oil.

Sudan hopes to attract new Chinese investments after Beijing had refrained from implementing a number of projects agreed with Khartoum following the latter's failure to settle its debts.

Sudan's total debt to China is estimated at $10 billion, accounting for about one-fifth of Sudan's estimated $53 billion foreign debt.

(ST)

September 2, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's President Omer al-Bashir and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi have agreed to develop an implementation matrix for the joint projects agreed between the two countries.

In a meeting held on the sidelines of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum (FOCAC) in Beijing Sunday, Al-Bashir and al-Sisi said the implementation matrix would be approved in the Egyptian-Sudanese Higher Committee (ESHC) meeting in Khartoum in October.

The two leaders discussed the ongoing work of the joint committees between the two countries, expressing determination to develop and enhance bilateral relations.

They also agreed to implement the joint projects on the various domains including meat production, transformative industries river transport, railways and the joint agricultural area, pointing to the positive impact of these projects on the two peoples.

The two leaders also reviewed the recent regional developments, stressing the need to continue coordination between the two countries on all fields.

During a visit of al-Sisi to Khartoum last month, the two countries agreed to coordinate efforts to enhance the security of the Red Sea and promote bilateral economic and trade cooperation.

The tumultuous relations between Sudan and Egypt experienced last December a new crisis over media attacks against al-Bashir after a visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Sudan. Also, Sudan accused Egypt and Eritrea of supporting rebel groups to attack the Kassala state on the eastern border.

However, the two countries recently developed a joint security cooperation against the opposition groups from both sides.

The main differences between the two neighbours remain the dispute over the border triangle area of Halayeb and the construction of Ethiopian Grand Renaissance Dam that Sudan backs.

(ST)

September 2, 2018 (JUBA) - The rebel National Salvation Front (NAS) of General Thomas Cirillio once again denounced the final text of the revitalized agreement for peace in South Sudan and accused the guarantors of prioritizing their own economic and security interests.

Thomas Cirillo Swaka (Photo Reuters)

In a previous statement, the group has already rejected the final peace document and distanced itself from its initialling by the South Sudan Opposition alliance (SSOA) of which NAS is a member. Like the People's Democratic Movement and the SPLM-FDs, it reiterated its demand for a genuine federal system protecting the tribal border and establishing regional autonomy.

But in a second statement dated on the 1st September, General Cirillio who is currently in the United States attacked directly the guarantors and accused them of considering their own security and economic interests rather than achieving a lasting peace in South Sudan.

"The preoccupation of some of the countries undertaking the mediation is not with how best to secure just and sustainable peace in South Sudan but rather with arrangements that best protect the various and conflicting interests of some IGAD member states in South Sudan".

The Sudan and Uganda are the guarantors of the Khartoum Round of the revitalization process. Also, Khartoum has secured the resumption of oil production in South Sudan and begun pumping it for exportation through Port Sudan.

Kampala is also seen as the other beneficiary of the peace agreement because South Sudan has been the main destination of Ugandan products. The According to Uganda Export Promotion Board and Kampala City Traders Association (KACITA) estimates, Uganda's exports lose some Shs3.5 billion ($930.000.00) every day, since the eruption of the South Sudan civil war on 15 December 2013.

Also, in several articles dedicated to the armed groups in Sudan, the peace agreement bans the presence and support to the rebels who fight the Sudanese government in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states as well as in Darfur region. These groups are accused of fighting along the South Sudanese government army.

Cirillio also criticized the method adopted by the mediators in Khartoum saying the "Agreement is not an outcome of a dialogue between the parties". he added that during the negotiating on the governance agreement "the parties spoke to paper and to proposals as deem fit by the mediation"

Also, he said the mediation the "excluded meaningful participation by key stakeholders - civil society, women, youth and the international community".

The government and the Other Political Parties opposition coalition (OPP) initialled the deal on 28 August while the SPLM-IO chaired by Riek Machar and the SSOA signed it on 30 August after receiving reassurance from the Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir that their concerns will be addressed by the IGAD leaders.

However, the two groups said they would not sign the final text of the revitalized agreement if the IGAD head of states didn't address their four concerns including the number of the contested states, the quorum of the cabinet and parliament meetings, and the constitution-making process. Also, they asked that Ethiopia and Kenya join Sudan and Uganda as guarantors and deploy their forces within the UNMISS.

The SPLM-FDs signed the deal on 28 August but its leader Pagan Amum denounced the initialling of the final document by the head of their delegation Pagan Amum saying "prematurely" signed the deal.

(ST)

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