I have hesitated for some time before writing these thoughts. They come neither from politics nor from ambition, but from years spent watching a country whose people have shown remarkable resilience under circumstances few others have endured.
I know South Sudan, and I know the Equatorias, Central, and Eastern alike, better than many who come only briefly. I have sat beneath the shade of village trees, shared simple meals, listened more than I have spoken, and learned that wisdom is often found far from conference rooms and official reports. I have spoken with chiefs, clergy, teachers, mothers, young people, civil servants, and soldiers. I have seen both the promise and the pain. That is why I write not as a stranger, but as someone who has come to care deeply about the future of your country.
A neighbor does not always have the answers. Nor should a neighbor presume to tell other people how they ought to govern themselves. Yet friendship carries with it a quiet obligation to speak honestly when silence serves no one.
South Sudan possesses extraordinary natural wealth. It has fertile land, abundant water, forests, minerals, energetic young people, and a strategic place within East Africa. These are not small advantages. They are foundations upon which peaceful and prosperous societies have been built elsewhere. Yet history teaches that natural wealth alone does not create stability. More often, it tests institutions, leadership, and the willingness of communities to place the common good above immediate interests.
The proposed mining activities in Kala Boma therefore deserve careful consideration. Exploration itself is neither good nor bad. What determines its value is the quality of governance that surrounds it. Communities should understand what is proposed before decisions are taken. They should know who the investors are, what minerals are expected, how the environment will be protected, how land rights will be respected, and how benefits will be shared. These questions should never be treated as obstacles to development. They are the conditions that make development durable.
There is a tendency, in many countries blessed with mineral resources, to measure wealth only by what lies beneath the soil. That is understandable, but incomplete. A forest, a clean river, productive farmland, and a healthy community are also forms of capital. They do not appear on a balance sheet as easily as gold or rare minerals, yet they sustain life for generations. Good governance recognizes every form of wealth, not only that which can be extracted and exported.
Experience from many countries suggests several principles that are worth keeping in mind. Independent geological assessments build confidence. Environmental and Social Impact Assessments should be transparent and available to the public. Local communities should participate freely and meaningfully in decisions that affect their land and livelihoods. Agreements on employment, education, healthcare, infrastructure, and community investment should be reached before production begins rather than afterwards. Independent oversight, including representatives of traditional authorities, women, youth, churches, technical experts, and civil society, helps maintain trust over time.
Strong institutions are often less visible than roads or bridges, yet they are the infrastructure upon which every successful society ultimately depends. Transparent procurement, independent courts, professional civil servants, and accountable local government are not administrative luxuries. They are the mechanisms through which citizens develop confidence that development is being pursued fairly and for the benefit of all.
South Sudan need not imitate another country. Every nation must find its own path. Yet there is wisdom in studying both successes and failures elsewhere. Norway’s stewardship of petroleum revenues, Botswana’s management of diamonds, and Ghana’s continuing efforts to strengthen mining governance offer valuable lessons. Equally instructive are countries where natural wealth has fueled corruption, environmental degradation, or conflict. Good judgement is often formed as much by understanding mistakes as by celebrating successes.
The greatest resource in Kala Boma is unlikely to be the mineral itself. It is the young people who will inherit the consequences of today’s decisions. Investment in technical education, apprenticeships, scholarships, and vocational training should begin before large-scale extraction. Local people should become engineers, geologists, environmental scientists, heavy equipment operators, entrepreneurs, and business leaders. Communities should become participants in development rather than observers of it.
Mining also requires a longer perspective. Every mineral deposit will one day be exhausted. The question is therefore not simply what can be extracted from the ground, but what will remain when extraction has ended. If revenues are invested wisely in schools, hospitals, roads, renewable energy, agriculture, clean water, technical education, and local enterprise, future generations will inherit assets that continue to create opportunity long after the last truck has departed.
Responsible mining should leave behind more knowledge than pollution, more opportunity than dependency, and more resilience than regret. Environmental restoration should be planned before excavation begins, not after the landscape has already been altered.
In my own country, we have learned that trust is perhaps the most valuable resource a nation can possess. It cannot be mined, drilled, or harvested. It is earned slowly through honesty, fairness, and institutions that serve all citizens equally. Once lost, it is difficult to restore. Every major public decision should therefore strengthen trust rather than diminish it.
Peace is not secured only through political agreements. It is strengthened whenever citizens believe that public decisions are fair, transparent, and inclusive. Development carried out with integrity, therefore, becomes an instrument of peace as much as an instrument of economic growth.
Those entrusted with public office are not merely administrators of the present. They are custodians of the future. Minerals extracted today belong, in a moral sense, not only to those alive now but also to children yet unborn. Good leadership asks not only what can be gained today, but what should still remain tomorrow.
South Sudan has travelled a difficult road. Those who have walked alongside the country over the years have admired not only its courage but also the patience and dignity shown by ordinary people. That history deserves a future built upon transparency, accountability, and careful stewardship rather than haste.
I hope that this consultation marks the beginning of an open conversation rather than the conclusion of one. Development succeeds when governments, investors, and communities work not as opponents but as partners. That approach demands time, honesty, and mutual respect. It is rarely the quickest path, but it is almost always the strongest one.
During my years of knowing the people of the Equatorias, I have never doubted their dignity, resilience, or practical wisdom. Those qualities have carried communities through war and uncertainty. I believe they are equally capable of guiding development, provided their voices are heard with respect and their participation is genuine.
I have learned over the years that the most important decisions are rarely those taken most quickly. They are the decisions that people still regard as wise twenty or thirty years later. My hope is that the choices made in Kala Boma will be judged in that way by the children who will one day inherit both the land and the responsibility of caring for it.
I offer these reflections with respect for the sovereignty of South Sudan and with confidence in the wisdom of its people. Good neighbors do not seek to decide another nation’s future. They simply hope that, when important choices arise, those choices are made carefully, openly, and with future generations firmly in mind.
With sincere respect,
Bjørn Halvorsen
Stavanger, Norway
The views expressed in ‘opinion’ articles published by Radio Tamazuj are solely those of the writer. The veracity of any claims made is the responsibility of the author, not Radio Tamazuj.
and then