The reconstituted High-Level Ad Hoc Committee on the Implementation of the Revitalized Peace Agreement has assured the Intergovernmental Authority on Development IGAD) of its commitment to fully implement the 2018 peace agreement ahead of elections scheduled for December 2026.
Last month, President Salva Kiir reshuffled the committee overseeing the peace deal, appointing 31 members from various political parties. The committee is chaired by senior presidential adviser Kuol Manyang Juuk of the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), with SPLM-IO’s Lasuba Ludoru Wongo as deputy and Cabinet Affairs Minister Elia Lomuro of the National Agenda as secretary-general.
Notably absent were members of the SPLM-IO loyal to Riek Machar, who remains under house arrest in Juba. Most appointees instead belong to a rival SPLM-IO faction led by Stephen Par Kuol, the country’s peacebuilding minister.
Machar’s supporters accuse Par Kuol of orchestrating a coup against their leader and colluding with Kiir to undermine the implementation of the peace agreement.
Though contested by Machar’s faction, the new committee recently met with the peace monitoring body, the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC).
RJEMC Interim chairperson Maj. Gen. George Aggrey Owinow (rtd) urged the high-level committee to expedite its review of the peace roadmap and prioritize pending tasks before general elections.
Speaking to reporters after Thursday’s meeting in Juba, IGAD Executive Secretary Workneh Gebeyehu said the high-level committee reaffirmed its commitment to the 2018 peace deal despite challenges.
“My team and I received a comprehensive briefing from the committee. We have seen the actual implementation and the challenges it faces,” Gebeyehu said. “As a regional organization, we are here to support the aspirations of the people of South Sudan and the implementation by the government.”
He added, “The government and this committee assured us that the implementation of the agreement will continue. That is a very important thing.”
For his part, Committee Secretary-General Martin Elia Lomuro said they would work with IGAD and other regional bodies to ensure South Sudan is prepared for elections within 18 months.
“In the 18 months to come, we can take our people to elections and hopefully achieve stability,” Lomuro said. “The people of South Sudan need rest from transitional governments. Multi-party power-sharing governments cause confusion and compromise the country’s stability.”
Gebeyehu also met with Vice President Benjamin Bol Mel to discuss the peace process.
The visit of the senior IGAD official comes amid heightened security and political tensions after Kiir sidelined his first vice president and longtime rival, Machar, who was placed under house arrest in March.
Kiir and Machar fought a five-year civil war that killed some 400,000 people before signing a revitalized power-sharing agreement in 2018, brokered by IGAD.
However, critical tasks—including security arrangements, drafting a permanent constitution, and election preparations—remain stalled due to poor relations between the two leaders.
Analysts warn that without major reforms and a return to the peace process, credible elections in December 2026 appear unlikely.