By William Madouk Garang
The sixth Governors’ Forum yesterday started with focus on ‘roadmap’ to fast-track the implementation of the pending peace provisions.
The week-long forum is being officiated by President Salva Kiir and attended by the five vice presidents, national and states ministers, all the governors from ten states and chief administrators from the three administrative areas.
Speaking during the opening of the 6th Governors’ Forum, President Salva Kiir directed the state governors and chief administrators to deliberate on ways to speed up the execution of the peace process through the recently ratified roadmap.
“The roadmap which should be the subject of your discussion in the coming days was solely developed by parties to the agreement, and it is encouraging UN system and other partners to join hands with us in this forum to explore ways of fast-tracking its implementation,” the head of the state said.
“My hope is that your deliberation will be beneficial to the process of putting our country permanently to the path of peace,” he continued.
He added that since they signed peace in 2018, parties have been putting concerted efforts which brought peace to where it is now, asserting that they are aware of frustration from partners over slow implementation.
“What is missing in this collective desire to see the agreement implemented in letter and spirit was and still is genuine partnership,” he emphasized.
Minister of Presidential Affairs Dr. Barnaba Marial Benjamin stated that the Governors’ Forum is a platform where governors and stakeholders meet to discuss issues of national interest.
“This is a forum where we interact with our governors that reflect the system we have in this country – at national level, state, and local government level,”
On his part, Emmanuel Adil, the governor of Central Equatoria State said that as governors, they would work relentlessly and engage various communities in dialogue and peace building for restoration of sustainable peace that will pave way for return of refugees and IDPs.
UNDP representative Dr. Samuel Doe said: “this Governors forum provides an opportunity for governors and administrators to exchange how the leadership and government driving implementation of the agreement in and people’s enjoyment in benefit of peace,”
The forum is themed: “Accelerating the implementation of the Revitalized Peace Agreement in accordance with the road map 2022.”
The event is organized by the Office of the President with support from the United Nations Development Program.
On Monday, the Transitional National Legislative Assembly formalized the much-awaited government legitimacy by endorsing the peace roadmap for extending lifespan of the transitional period till February 22, 2025.
Roadmap covers chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the agreement and calculates the implementation status of each of the provisions of the 6 chapters, and pinpoints activities that are completed, ongoing, or pending.
Peace actions that are in progress or outstanding are recorded and tabulated with execution timeframe, start and finish dates, and that to provide completion calendars.