South Sudanese President Salva Kiir has confirmed that he will seek another term in the country’s long-awaited elections, insisting that the vote will proceed despite mounting concerns over the implementation of the 2018 peace agreement and preparations for the polls.
Speaking to Citizen TV on Wednesday, Kiir urged South Sudanese to register in large numbers and bring the country’s transitional government to an end through the ballot box.
“I will be on the ballot,” Kiir said, confirming he will contest the presidency on the ticket of the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM).
The president, who has led South Sudan since it gained independence from Sudan in 2011, stated that his government is doing everything necessary to ensure the elections are held.
If conducted, the polls would mark South Sudan’s first-ever national election since independence.
However, significant obstacles remain. Key provisions of the 2018 Revitalised Peace Agreement have yet to be implemented, while voter registration has still not begun despite the country moving closer to the scheduled polls.
The opposition has repeatedly accused Kiir’s administration of lacking the political will to organise credible elections.
The political environment has further deteriorated following the detention of First Vice President and opposition leader Riek Machar, who has been under house arrest since March 2025 after being charged with treason.
The charges stem from an attack on a military base in Nasir that killed more than 250 soldiers.
Machar’s arrest has widened divisions within the unity government and raised fresh concerns over the future of the fragile peace process.
South Sudan descended into civil war in 2013 after a power struggle between Kiir and Machar.
The conflict claimed an estimated 400,000 lives before the two leaders signed a peace agreement in 2018 and formed a transitional unity government.
Although the deal largely halted large-scale fighting, its implementation has repeatedly stalled.
The country continues to grapple with political instability, communal violence, severe flooding, food insecurity and an economic crisis.
According to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), violence across South Sudan killed 2,240 people in 2024.
The United Nations and international partners have repeatedly criticised South Sudan’s leaders for delaying the peace process, restricting political freedoms, fuelling insecurity and mismanaging public resources.
They have warned that credible elections depend on implementing the outstanding provisions of the peace agreement before South Sudanese head to the polls.
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