South Sudan’s Roads and Bridges Minister Peter Lam Both said on Tuesday that overloaded trucks from East Africa had contributed to the deterioration of the country’s main trade corridor linking the capital Juba to the Ugandan border.
“The reason why the road is so much destroyed is because of the heavy loads coming from East Africa,” Lam Both said at the seventh Global Logistics Convention 2026 in Juba.
He said regional regulations allowed trucks to carry up to 45 tonnes, but trucks arriving in Nimule sometimes consolidated their cargo, resulting in vehicles carrying 60 or 70 tonnes.
“But in South Sudan, when the two trucks come from the region and they reach Nimule, they offload to one truck and the other one goes back because there is no measurement here,” he said.
“So you will find a truck of 60 tons and 70 tons. And when it runs on a road like Juba-Nimule, it crashes it down. That’s why the road dilapidated in less than 20 years, for those who don’t know it.”
Lam Both said South Sudan had installed a weighbridge in Nimule that would be used to control axle loads when the road is reconstructed.
“But now we have a weight bridge now. And when we reconstruct it very soon, the weight bridge is going to control the axle load. And we will be harmonizing with our sisterly countries in East Africa,” he said.
The 192-km Juba-Nimule road, South Sudan’s first major paved highway, was upgraded with about $225 million in U.S. government funding through USAID. Construction was carried out by Louis Berger Group and subcontractors, and the project was inaugurated in September 2012. The road cut travel time between Juba and Nimule from about eight hours to less than three and became a key trade route linking South Sudan to Uganda and onward to Kenya’s port of Mombasa.
But the road has developed extensive potholes and deteriorated sections, prompting repeated complaints from motorists and other road users over what they say is a lack of timely repairs and maintenance by the government.
Lam Both said the government was also working on the Nadapal-Juba road, another key link between South Sudan and Kenya.
“We are also working on the Nadapal-Juba road, which is another key road between South Sudan and Kenya. And tomorrow I will be in Nairobi, we will be discussing with my colleague there how this can happen,” he said.
He also said work was planned on the Pagak-Paloch road linking South Sudan with Ethiopia and oil-producing areas in Upper Nile state.
“And so many other plans that we have. But what is important is that without roads, without railway, without water transport, without airports, what we are discussing today is a pipe dream,” Lam Both said.
“And for that reason, we must all work together to make sure that we find effective ways to promote trade. Effective ways to deliver services to our people. Effective ways to deliver security, because without roads you can’t have it.”
“Roads lead to social integration, because people move from place to place,” he added.
Meanwhile, Transport Minister Rizik Zachariah Hassan said the government was working to develop a transport system connecting South Sudan internally and with neighbouring countries.
“For South Sudan, transport is not merely a source of government, but transport is the bloodstream of our economy. We live on it. Without logistics, without logistic chain and transportation modes, we cannot attain whatever objectives that we want to reach,” Hassan said.
“This is why our government is determined to build a transport system that connects our people internally and connects South Sudan externally,” he said.
Hassan said the government had tabled a transport policy framework before parliament and submitted five transport bills to the Ministry of Justice.
“As a country, our future depends on our regional cooperation. We must strengthen our connections through the Northern Corridor,” he said.
The three-day Global Logistics Convention opened in Juba on Tuesday, bringing together representatives of East African, international and local companies to discuss transport, logistics, infrastructure and regional trade.
The event is organised by the South Sudan Freight Forwarders Association (SSFFA).
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