Kiir and Machar agree on Cabinet
Saturday March 07 2020
South Sudan President, Salva Kiir Mayardit (left) sits with his First Vice-President Riek Machar at the State House in Juba, on February 20, 2020. PHOTO | PETER LOUIS | AFP
The parties to the South Sudan Peace agreement on Thursday agreed on Cabinet portfolio balance, and will now be expected to name ministers and their deputies as the government gets down to work.
Dr Riek Machar’s People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) got the key ministries of Defence, Petroleum and Mining.
The faction will also control the ministries of Energy and Dams; Health, Water Resources; Federal Affairs; Gender, Child, Social Welfare and nearly created ministry of Peace; will also have three deputies in Cabinet Affairs; Interior and Finance and Planning ministries, and get governorship of the Lakes States; Eastern Equatoria and Upper Nile (Malakal).
SPLM-IO—which was assigned nine Cabinet posts and three deputies—last week delayed the formation of the transitional government of national unity (TGoNU) Cabinet when it protested that President Salva Kiir’s faction wanted to allocate itself all the key ministries.
President Kiir’s faction got 20 ministries.