The fragmented Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) has embarked on internal reforms after acknowledging that disagreements within the party are to blame for the crisis facing the country.

So far, the party’s highest organ, the National Liberation Council, has passed without amendments the Arusha Accord that initiated the intra-party dialogue among the three factions — SPLM-in Government, SPLM-in-Opposition and former detainees.

The accord had been tabled by the SPLM-in-Government following its signing in Arusha on January 21. Implementation of the accord will be facilitated by a tripartite committee of the three factions, which has formed various committees that will deal with reforms in the party, national leadership, the security sector, the economy, and national reconciliation and unity.

According to SPLM secretary-general, Dr Ann Itto, the process on the government side will be led by the National Liberation Committee, which will evaluate SPLM achievements and shortcomings since the signing of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement up to the current crisis.

But the process will take off once the three factions agree and sign the roadmap to SPLM reforms, which will be a continuous process that will outlive the proposed Transitional Government of National Unity and the next elections.

While the government wants to use the Arusha Accord to ask other factions to come home so that they can participate in the internal reforms as one entity, those in the opposition camp want the control of the party to be divorced from the presidency by making party organs, such as the National Liberation Committee independent.

READ: Hope for peace in S Sudan after Arusha talks unite belligerents

With the internal reforms still awaiting the outcome of the Addis Ababa peace talks led by Igad, the top party leadership is now conceding that the SPLM — which was started in 1983 when the late Dr John Garang rebelled against Khartoum — has been slow in changing from a liberation movement to a conventional political party and still lacks sufficient skills for modern nation-state building.

Dr Itto, who has been at the helm since former secretary-general Pagan Amum was suspended in July 2013, told The EastAfrican that contrary to the common perception that the conflict within the party started in 2013, the disagreements started immediately after Independence in July 2011. She said that there was consensus on the need for reforms within SPLM in line with a new independent state, but the party leaders had different ideas.

“After conflict erupted in December 2013, we have now realised that after Independence in July 2011 we needed to stop celebrations and begin looking at the transformation of SPLM from a liberation movement into a political party in government.

Initially the SPLM had the competence and the tools for fighting with Khartoum, but that is the past and now the party needs new skills for nation and state building,” said Dr Itto.

She also noted that the reform process will involve self-analysis of successes and failures since the signing of the CPA in 2005, and a look at whether the party has sufficient skills for the art of government such as policy development, mobilising resources, dealing with other nations, and building national consensus.

She also cited illiterate youth — almost 70 per cent of the population — weak institutions such as the judiciary, the police and the army, which is amorphous and made up of former militias, as well as arms in the hands of civilians as some of the challenges facing the government.