Political Risk:
Very High
Score:
17/100
Defence and Security Policy and Policy Transparency
Q1
50/100
Is there formal provision for effective and independent legislative scrutiny of defence policy?
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In broad terms, the Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan 2011, Article 57 (Powers & Function of the National Legislative Assembly) and…
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Parliamentary debate on defence matters or review of defence policy is limited and mostly reactionary in response to evolving crisis scenarios such as the…
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The legislature’s ability to function as an entirely independent body is compromised in a number of ways. First, more than half of the legislature…
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Q2
21/100
Does the country have an identifiable and effective parliamentary defence and security committee (or similar such organisations) to exercise oversight?
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The Committee of Security, Defence, and Public Order exists and is tasked with overseeing defence matters. However, the fact that there is no Defence…
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Although the members of the Defence Committee identified by this assessor, such as Aleu Ayany, Maker Thiong, David Okwaro, Salva Mathok, Daniel Deng Monydit,…
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The SPLA White Paper on Defence was written in 2008 to, among other things, address the main security threat, namely the possibility of invasion…
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The Committee has minimal intuition to initiate oversight processes. However, it does summon ministers occassionally for scrutiny of defence matters. It is worth noting…
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The Committee’s members lack any specialisation in defence matters. Their understanding of issues such defence transformation, defence policymaking or even the intricacies of security…
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The committee has, in the past, summoned the ministers of defence, national security and interior several times to parliament to explain the rise of…
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Q3
31/100
Is the country’s national defence policy or national security strategy debated and publicly available?
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The formulation of the SPLA White Paper on Defence, for instance, involved only the executive and the National Legislative Assembly (NLA). There is evidence…
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Historically, major threats elicit discussion, dating as far back as when the SPLA White Paper on Defence was drafted, [1] e.g. the threat of…
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Although the SPLA White Paper on Defence was developed in March 2008, there is scant evidence to suggest that the final draft involved wide…
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Access to official defence documents is difficult. First, there is no culture of accountability to the public. [1] The need to make documents available…
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Q4
42/100
Do defence and security institutions have a policy, or evidence, of openness towards civil society organisations (CSOs) when dealing with issues of corruption?
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The Sudan People’s Liberation Army Act 2009, in outlining the duties and functions of the Minister in charge of the army, clearly states that…
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CSOs are allowed to operate in the country, however their ability to conduct their duties is restricted. Until recently, CSOs required a permit for…
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There is some engagement with CSOs and an awareness that they need to be engaged with. Recent examples include the engagement of CSOs in…
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Q5
50/100
Has the country signed up to the following international anti-corruption instruments: UNCAC and the OECD Convention?
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Q6
0/100
Is there evidence of regular, active public debate on issues of defence? If yes, does the government participate in this debate?
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There is extremely limited debate on defence issues. Some CSOs, however, are engaged in discussing security issues. Issues that inhibit discussion on defence issues…
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The government rarely engages with the public on defence issues. When such engagement happens, it is during crisis moments or emergencies, such as during…
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Q7
25/100
Does the country have an openly stated and effectively implemented anti-corruption policy for the defence sector?
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There are no official policy documents from the Ministry of Defence that clearly stipulate a commitment to fighting corruption in no uncertain terms. The…
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At a national level, the Southern Sudan Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009 applies to every government ministry, including defence. According to the Act, the Commission’s…
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Q8
0/100
Are there independent, well-resourced, and effective institutions within defence and security tasked with building integrity and countering corruption?
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Within the Ministry, various departments that are supposed to offer oversight on corruption issues exist. These are the internal audit unit, procurement, accounts, budget,…
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The MOD has an internal audit unit whose duty is to offer oversight on audits and ensure that the Ministry is audit compliant. [1]…
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There is no publicly available information to score this indicator, therefore, it has been marked ‘Not Enough Information’. Sources contacted for information have not…
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Q9
NS/100
Does the public trust the institutions of defence and security to tackle the issue of bribery and corruption in their establishments?
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This indicator is not assigned a score in the GDI. In general, the public has little confidence in the government’s ability to tackle corruption…
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Q10
NEI/100
Are there regular assessments of the areas of greatest corruption risk for ministry and armed forces personnel, and are the findings used as inputs to the anti-corruption policy?
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There is no publicly available information to score this indicator, therefore, it has been marked ‘Not Enough Information’. Sources contacted for information have not…
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There is no publicly available information to score this indicator, therefore, it has been marked ‘Not Enough Information’. Sources contacted for information have not…
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There is no publicly available information to score this indicator therefore, it has been marked ‘Not Enough Information’. Sources contacted for information have not…
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Defence Budgets
Q11
13/100
Does the country have a process for acquisition planning that involves clear oversight, and is it publicly available?
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The SPLA White Paper on Defence refers to acquisition happening according to a logistics guideline (Logistics Policy Guidelines) developed by the Ministry. [1] But…
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The Procurement Act clearly stipulates an open and transparent process regarding acquisitions in the Defence Ministry. [1] It involves various stakeholders (a procurement committee,…
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A defence and security committee in the National Legislative Assembly is supposed to provide external oversight. [1] However, there is no publicly available information…
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Q12
63/100
Is the defence budget transparent, showing key items of expenditure? And it is provided to the legislature in a timely fashion?
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The defence budget mostly shows topline figures, which have consistently shown that security has taken up the largest share over the years. [1] In…
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Budget preparation starts in March. This means that the legislature receives it in ample time before the June 30 deadline to table the budget.…
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Q13
NEI/100
Is there a legislative committee (or other appropriate body) responsible for defence budget scrutiny and analysis in an effective way?
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The Defence and Security Committee has (in theory) all the powers necessary, drawing such powers from the Constitution (See Part 5, Chapter 1, (54))…
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Although there is a Defence Committee in the National Legislative Assembly, its role in oversight on finance, acquisitions, and budget scrutiny is hardly visible…
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Q14
25/100
Is the approved defence budget made publicly available? In practice, can citizens, civil society, and the media obtain detailed information on the defence budget?
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The defence budget is contained in the national budget presented before the National Legislative Assembly and it is a public document in aggregated form.…
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The budget is actually available to the public, according to the Right of Access to Information Act 2013, which states that the public has…
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Government officials are often reluctant to share information even when they know they have to. [1] Although there is a law that enshrines the…
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Q15
0/100
Are sources of defence income other than from central government allocation (from equipment sales or property disposal, for example) published and scrutinised?
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The opaque nature of the government means that there is hardly any information about non-central government sources of funding. But recently, The Sentry, an…
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Any internal audits of off-budget income at the Defence Ministry should be reflected in the annual national audit of government accounts by the Auditor…
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The public, civil society, and media have a very superficial understanding of defence issues in general. [1] Issues such as public scrutiny are unheard…
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Q16
13/100
Is there an effective internal audit process for defence ministry expenditure (that is, for example, transparent, conducted by appropriately skilled individuals, and subject to parliamentary oversight)?
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Any internal audits of off-budget income at the Defence Ministry should be reflected in the annual national audit of government accounts by the Auditor…
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The Ministry of Defence has an internal audit unit. [1] Its role is to conduct “unrestricted audits,” establish procedures and guidelines, conduct internal audits…
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From previous literature, we know that the army has resisted handing over documents to the Auditor General for auditing purposes. [1] The last audit…
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No audits by the Ministry have been made public and there there is no publicly available information to score this indicator. As such, it…
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Q17
8/100
Is there effective and transparent external auditing of military defence expenditure?
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By law, the Defence Ministry, like all other government departments, is subject to an audit by the Auditor General. [1] However, as cited above,…
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The Auditor General is undermined, as shown by the refusal of the Ministry to disclose its spending to the last time audit reports were…
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External audits of all government departments, including defence, by the Auditor General were published in a timely fashion when the audit reports were being…
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There has been no external audit released to the public since 2012 to enable an understanding of the actions taken by the Defence Ministry…
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Nexus of Defence and National Assets
Q18
6/100
Is there evidence that the country’s defence institutions have controlling or financial interests in businesses associated with the country’s natural resource exploitation and, if so, are these interests publicly stated and subject to scrutiny?
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The SPLA Act 2009 does not mention or authorise the Defence Ministry to be involved in business. Nevertheless, the organisational structure of the Ministry…
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The Defence Ministry is involved in natural resource exploitation. The UN Panel of Experts on South Sudan has unearthed the participation of the army’s…
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The involvement of individuals in the defence sector has been widely documented by organisations working on policy issues relating to South Sudan and the…
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The history of elite corruption in South Sudan indicates that the involvement of top generals in the minerals/natural resource sector is a red flag…
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There is insufficient evidence to indicate whether these interests are subject to parliamentary scrutiny, according to the available research on the issue. [1] [2]…
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Organised Crime
Q19
13/100
Is there evidence, for example through media investigations or prosecution reports, of a penetration of organised crime into the defence and security sector? If no, is there evidence that the government is alert and prepared for this risk?
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A review of illicit activity in South Sudan as outlined in various investigative reports in recent years by Global Witness, The Sentry, and the…
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The government is not trying to respond to organised crime penetrating the defence sector nor has the government provided any response to defence sector…
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Q20
0/100
Is there policing to investigate corruption and organised crime within the defence services and is there evidence of the effectiveness of this policing?
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The Police Act, 2009 does not clearly state whether the police have jurisdiction to investigate corruption cases in the defence services. [1] There is…
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This indicator is marked ‘Not Applicble’, because there is no policing function exercised over the defence services. The Police Act, 2009 does not clearly…
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This indicator is marked ‘Not Applicble’, because there is no policing function exercised over the defence services. The Police Act, 2009 does not clearly…
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Control of Intelligence Services
Q21
0/100
Are the policies, administration, and budgets of the intelligence services subject to effective and independent oversight?
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The Committee of Security, Defence and Public Order oversees the National Intelligence and Security Service (NSS). The independence of this Committee is questionable. All…
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Since 2012, the NSS’s role has evolved and deviated significantly, from its original constitutional mandate of information gathering and analysis, into a heavily militarised…
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Q22
0/100
Are senior positions within the intelligence services filled on the basis of objective selection criteria, and are appointees subject to investigation of their suitability and prior conduct?
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The NSS is headed by two director generals: Akol Koor of the Internal Security Bureau and Thomas Duoth of the External Security Bureau. According…
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Impartiality may be an issue because the members of the National Security Council, who are all appointees of the President, can not be expected…
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There is little evidence to show that the appointment of the heads of the NSS bureau was subject to vetting. Both men were godfathered…
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Export Controls
Q23
0/100
Does the government have a well-scrutinised process for arms export decisions that aligns with Articles 7.1.iv, 11.5, and 15.6 of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)?
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South Sudan has yet to sign or ratify the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). [1]
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This indicator is marked ‘Not Applicable’ as South Sudan has yet to sign or ratify the ATT [1].
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This indicator has been marked ‘Not Applicable’ as there is no manufacturing base in South Sudan, for anything, including arms. The country does not…
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Lobbying in Defence
There is no legal framework to regulate lobbying in the defence sector, as per the SPLA Act 2009 and the Civil Service Act 2011.…
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This indicator has been marked ‘Not Applicable’ as there is no legal framework to regulate lobbying in the defence sector, as per the SPLA…
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This indicator has been marked ‘Not Applicable’ as there is no legal framework to regulate lobbying in the defence sector, as per the SPLA…
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This indicator has been marked ‘Not Applicable’ as there is no legal framework to regulate lobbying in the defence sector, as per the SPLA…
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