Isaac Ajiba Ochang, a former information minister for South Sudan’s Jonglei State, was buried on Saturday at his residence in the capital, Juba, following his death in Cairo last month.
Ajiba, 71, died on June 29 in the Egyptian capital after a prolonged illness, family members said. His body was repatriated to Juba on the day of the funeral.
The burial was attended by senior community figures and government officials, including the deputy speaker of the Jonglei State parliament.
Baranaba Okony Gilo, a community leader and former state health minister, described Ajiba’s death as a loss to the nation.
“Isaac is known as a man of peace particularly among the communities of Dinka, Nuer, Anyuak, and Murle,” Gilo told reporters. “So his death is a big loss to the people of Jonglei State and South Sudan as a whole.”
Ajiba served as Jonglei’s information minister from 2010 to 2012, agriculture minister from 2009 to 2010, and education minister from 2001 to 2003. He was also a member of the former national parliament in Khartoum, representing his home county of Akobo in 2005.
Before his political career, Ajiba spent decades in the banking sector across Sudan and South Sudan, holding senior positions at Unity Bank and Ivory Bank in cities including Juba, Malakal, Wau, Renk, Khartoum and Bor, according to his family.
Former Jonglei Governor Philip Thon Leek expressed his condolences, saying he had known Ajiba since their time in Sudan.
“It is unfortunate that Isaac Ajiba is dead,” Leek said. “I have known him in Sudan and later during my governorship, but he served during Kuol Manyang’s tenure.”
Rose Isaac Ajiba Ochang, the eldest daughter of the deceased, said her father’s passing was a national loss.
“The demise of our father Isaac Ajiba is a big loss not only to our family and the Anyuak community but South Sudan as a whole,” she said. “The deceased has served the country in various capacities, both as a professional banker, and in public administration and community development initiatives in both Sudan and South Sudan.”
Ajiba, a graduate of Juba University, was born in Akobo County in January 1955.
He is survived by his wives, Mary Momo Omot Akodo and Helen Justin Madoma, 13 children, 28 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
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