South Sudan's President Salva Kiir speaks with Russia's President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa summit at the Kremlin Palace in Moscow Oct. 30, 2026 -

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South Sudan

With South Sudan six weeks away from its first national vote since independence, the head of the UN mission there told the Security Council that the real test is whether the country’s political transition holds together beyond polling day.

“The central challenge facing South Sudan today is whether the transition remains anchored in the Revitalized Peace Agreement and whether the gains of recent years can be preserved and sustained beyond the election,” said Anita Kiki Gbeho, head of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) briefing Member States today (10 Nov) in New York.

The elections are set for 22 December. In September, President Salva Kiir dissolved the transitional unity government, removed all vice-presidents, including First Vice-President Riek Machar, and appointed a caretaker administration. Opposition groups have rejected the moves as breaching the power-sharing terms of the 2018 peace agreement.

“The true measure of success is simple: whether South Sudanese citizens are safer tomorrow than they are today,” Gbeho told the 15-member body.

Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, the African Union’s High Representative for the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea, pointed to a funding gap. “The government does not seem to have enough resources to be able to finance these elections,” he said.

Murithi Mutiga of the International Crisis Group warned the vote could backfire. “We are concerned that rushed elections could be a decisive final blow to the 2018 framework and would open the door to a return to sustained large-scale violence,” Mutiga said.

The security situation has deteriorated in several regions, according to the Secretary-General’s latest report. Clashes in Upper Nile displaced more than 35,000 people, and an ambush on a UN patrol in Jonglei in August killed three peacekeepers.

U.S. diplomat Jennifer Locetta said the government of South Sudan “blocks UNMISS patrols, stalls approvals and harasses UN personnel.”

South Sudan’s deputy ambassador, Sabino Edward Nyawella Amaikwey, said, “We encourage UNMISS to recognise the progress achieved, however gradual, while engaging the Government as a partner in addressing outstanding challenges. International engagement should also avoid approaches that could be perceived as taking sides among political actors, prejudging domestic political processes or encroaching upon matters that fall within the sovereign responsibility of the Government and people of South Sudan.”

The UN estimates that 2.5 million South Sudanese face emergency levels of hunger, and that 73,300 are in catastrophic conditions.

South Sudan vote: UN warns political transition must hold beyond polling day

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