WORLD BRIDGE BLOG

by Agostine Ndung'u

With the clock ticking towards the historic January 2011 referenda in South Sudan and Abyei, concerns are rising among the international community that preparations on the ground are moving at a dangerously slow pace. Unless precautions are taken immediately, Sudan might just slip back into civil war. To avert this looming danger, humanitarian and advocacy organizations, like Refugees International are abuzz with activity in Washington, D.C. As an intern at RI I attended several events about Sudan this summer that give a glimpse into the concerns felt by the policy community here in Washington.

On July 9, the United States Institute for Peace (USIP) held a discussion on education in south Sudan. Historically, south Sudan has been left out in all aspects of development, and the near-absolute lack of education has made it one of the poorest regions in the world. Panelists traced this dismal state of south Sudan’s education system to neglect by the British colonial administration and devastation by years of civil war. Poor infrastructure, a crippling lack of resources and general insecurity create significant challenges for the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) efforts to provide education. School enrolment, especially for girls, remains low with extremely high drop-out rates. This highlights the mountainous challenge facing the GoSS in building a new nation, if southerners chose to secede.

On July 12, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) organized panel presentations at the U.S. House of Representatives entitled “Building the Capacity for Human Rights, Peace and Security, and Governance in South Sudan.” Panelists represented the International Rescue Committee (IRC), Catholic Relief Services (CRS), National Democratic Institute (NDI), Human Rights Watch (HRW), International Relief and Development (IRD), U.S Institute of Peace (USIP) and other institutions. The U.S Special Envoy to Sudan, Gen. Scott Gration opened the discussion in a speech outlining both immediate and long-term challenges facing the country. He emphasized Sudanese President Omar El-Bashir’s importance in the referenda and peace processes. He warned that, “What happens (in Sudan) for the next six months will determine what will happen for the next six years.” The panels that followed examined some of the challenges in preparing for possible succession including the high expectations among south Sudanese for their government and localized conflicts including south-south violence. They also discussed the immense challenge of reintegrating hundreds of thousands of returning refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs).

On July 20, The Brookings Institution hosted John Prendergast of the Enough Project, Anthony Gambino, former USAID mission director in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Mwangi Kimenyi, a Senior Fellow at Brookings to discuss U.S strategy for Sudan and DRC. Panelists agreed that the two countries have not been able to achieve much since independence due to their recurrent conflicts. They urged the Obama Administration to step up and support efforts to bring “Africa’s two biggest wars” to an end. They amplified calls for greater intervention in south Sudan to ensure that the coming referenda run smoothly and conflict is averted. Mwangi Kimenyi asserted that the African Union must take the lead in Sudan, just as it did during the peace negotiations that led to signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. He added that the Chinese have invested heavily all over Africa and it is also in their interest that these conflicts come to an end.

All of these events highlight the rising concerns in the international community that time is running out for Sudan to make the necessary preparations before the January referenda. And hopefully these discussions among DC researchers, advocates, and policy-makers will translate into a genuine commitment to ensuring that Sudan does not fall back into war.