New Report: A Hope from Within? Countering the Intentional Destruction
of Governance and Transparency in South Sudan
Posted by Enough Team on Jul 27, 2016
Note: Enough Project Intern Will Cullen contributed to this blog post.
This blog contains excerpts from the full report.
Read or download the full report.
Today, the Enough Project released its latest report, “A Hope from
Within? Countering the Intentional Destruction of Governance and
Transparency in South Sudan” by Enough Project Associate Policy
Director Brian Adeba. The report comes out on the heels of an early
July outbreak of violence in South Sudan; a painful reminder of the
need to encourage necessary institutional reforms with the aim of
promoting transparency and accountability in the country.
As the African Union Commission of Inquiry noted in October 2015, the
onset of conflict in December 2013 was sparked in part by the failure
of the country’s institutions of governance to provide a system of
checks to mitigate the power imbalances that contributed to the war.
However, Adeba’s report notes that the perceived lack of capacity in
governance institutions in South Sudan is actually the symptom of a
much larger problem. Because governance institutions work at the
behest of elite politicians, it can be in the interest of these
politicians to disable these institutions and limit their ability to
play their role in oversight, regulation, and providing checks and
balances on other parts of the government - which is exactly what
happened in South Sudan. Sustainable peace in the country will
continue to be elusive unless leaders make profound and fundamental
changes to establish accountability and end impunity.
For decades, the people in the area that is now South Sudan have
been at war. As a consequence, institutions either never fully formed
or were weakened or destroyed, and the development of a skilled labor
force has been greatly hampered. At independence in 2011, the country
had few viable institutions upon which to build a base for the new
state. The strength and quality of institutions is still lacking.
Overall, capacity development in the country still requires
substantial investment, not only by international actors but also by
South Sudanese actors especially. (p. 18/19)
“A Hope from Within? Countering the Intentional Destruction of
Governance and Transparency in South Sudan” reviews the weaknesses of
three of South Sudan’s governance institutions that are most critical
to establishing accountability:
The Anti-Corruption Commission
The National Audit Chamber
The Public Accounts Committee in the National Legislative Assembly
All three institutions face considerable operational challenges that
have undercut their effectiveness in implementing their constitutional
mandates. In the right political atmosphere and with the right
political incentives for reform, these institutions could, however,
exercise their roles effectively. With genuine political will for
institutional effectiveness from top leadership, supported by pressure
and incentives from international partners with South Sudanese
leaders, these critical governance institutions could fulfill their
mandates.
By nature, violent kleptocracies hijack governance institutions
for the personal financial benefit of those within the ruling network
and for the security of the regime. These kleptocracies use extreme
violence, including mass atrocities, to maintain their hold on power.
In this regard, South Sudan’s governance institutions were hijacked
and the ability of these institutions to implement oversight functions
was compromised. Wanton corruption by the political elite accelerated
to unprecedented levels and further stymied the government’s ability
to deliver services to the populace. In 2012, President Salva Kiir
estimated that $4 billion was siphoned from the country’s coffers. (p.
2)
In order to ensure governance reforms guided by transparency and
accountability in South Sudan, five key policy recommendations must be
implemented by South Sudan, donor countries, and other key entities:
Fully fund and staff the agencies responsible for governance to
ensure long-term economic benefits.
Boost civil society’s role in the public sphere by supporting
civic bodies calling for transparency and accountability from diverse
regions of the country.
Tie external assistance to strict budget oversight, given
depreciating oil revenues and fears of hyperinflation from the
diversion and mismanagement of public funds. Donors should use a
dual-key system, similar to that of Liberia’s Governance and Economic
Management Assistance Program (GEMAP) to ensure transparency and
accountability.
Develop additional mechanisms for donor coordination and
evaluation of decision-making using international standards. Donors
should use clear and strictly-implemented anti-corruption benchmarks
to prevent misuse of the procurement process or donor assistance
related to equipment or training for the military and police.
Support domestic enforcement and external accountability measures,
including:
The establishment of the Hybrid Court for South Sudan to
prosecute atrocity and economic crimes.
The use of authorities of the U.S. Treasury Department’s
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to investigate the ways
that the proceeds of corruption are laundered out of South Sudan.
The imposition of additional targeted economic sanctions on
individuals responsible for corruption by the U.S. and other donors,
as well as the U.N. Security Council.
Read the full report.
Sudan and South Sudan
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