UK upgrades diplomatic mission in South Sudan
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March 21, 2011 (JUBA) – The United Kingdom (UK) has taken its
diplomatic representation in South Sudan to the level of a Consulate
General as the oil-producing region hurtles towards the declaration of
its independence in less than five month.
JPEG - 11.8 kb
New British General Consul in Southern Sudan Alastair McPhail
(www.barganews.com)
South Sudan is set to become the world’s newest nation in July after
it voted overwhelmingly in a referendum earlier this year to secede
from north Sudan with which it fought nearly half a century of
intermittent civil wars that ended with the signing of the
Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005.
A number of foreign countries, including China and the US, have
already established general consulates in the south which is expected
to gain worldwide recognition of its independence.
The transition of British embassy’s office in South Sudan was marked
on Wednesday, March 16, when the newly appointed Consul General
Alastair McPhail, who served from 2000-2005 in Sudan-related
diplomatic posts the most recent of which is his role as UK’s Special
Representative to Sudan, arrived in the region’s capital, according to
a press release issued by the Consulate.
“The United Kingdom is increasing its presence in Southern Sudan and
the establishment of our Consulate General is a key step in
strengthening the relationship between our two nations. I look forward
to the years ahead,” McPhail said upon arrival in Juba.
The current UK’s coalition government, which was formed in May 2010 by
the Conservatives and the Liberal democrats, has been implementing
radical austerity measures domestically in reaction to global
recession, and a more pragmatic approach towards Sudan.
UK’s state minister for Africa, Henry Bellingham, announced during a
visit to Khartoum last year that one of said that one of London’s
priorities was to build stronger trade relations with Sudan.
London announced this month that it would be implementing a set of
development programs in north and south Sudan focusing on providing
clean water; women’s education and justice; health and food security.
UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), which annually
devotes over 130 million USD annually to a wide-range of aid programs
in the grossly underdeveloped region, will be releasing funds to
international organizations to deliver long-term access to clean
drinking water for 800,000 people in North Sudan; a primary education
for 180,000 more girls in South Sudan.
The recently announced package of aid also includes nutrition support
for 10 million people across North and South Sudan; food security and
freedom from hunger for 1 million people in South Sudan; access to
justice for 250,000 women in North Sudan; and malaria prevention or
treatment for 750,000 people in South Sudan.
(ST)
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