In the Land of Southern Sudan
“When flying into Juba—a sleepy and poor town in Southern Sudan located on the banks of the Nile River—I find it hard to believe that it may become the capital of the newest nation in the world. The airport terminal resembles that of a very small municipality and is packed with people from various parts of Africa and the world. Some are in Western garb, while others are in more traditional dress. Luggage and all manner of corded boxes arrive from planes by farm tractor and trailer, and are deposited on a dock for inspection by uniformed and stern-looking customs officials. After abiding a cursory search of my bags, I exited the terminal and headed toward the ranks of ubiquitous SUVs that are the main means of transportation in Southern Sudan.
Along the road into town I pass the UN Compound, shacks, cows, goats, garbage, flying plastic bags and trucks loaded with imported food and supplies that are the lifeblood for some of the poorest people in Africa. In many ways, Juba is an overgrown village. It is composed of a rather dilapidated ‘downtown’ with crumbling stores and street stalls, African markets, very poor housing and a number of hotels and compounds. The town lays claim to the only paved roads in the country. During the wet months, the only way to get between towns and cities is to fly, as the roads are totally impassable.”
…Thus began CDR Partner Chris Moore’s consultancy in Southern Sudan on the development of land and property dispute-resolution systems for the Southern Sudan Land Commission and UN HABITAT.
Southern Sudan is currently part of the country of Sudan. Since the 1980s, the Northern Arab and Southern African regions of the country have engaged in a brutal 20-year civil war, which resulted in the deaths of over 2.5 million people and over 5 million displaced. In 2005, the North and South signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which ended the violent conflict and provided for a period of five years for the country to stabilize and conduct a referendum to determine whether the South would secede and become independent. On January 9, 2011, citizens of Southern Sudan voted in a referendum to determine the final status of the South.
Southern Sudan is a territory the size of the state of Texas, with an estimated population of roughly 8 million. The South has more than 200 ethnic groups. Among the most contentious issues between the North and South, and within the South, is land. Historically, the vast majority of land in the country is held by tribal groups and administered by traditional authorities and customary law.
During Northern rule, a significant amount of traditional land was nationalized. Concessions were issued without consultation or consent by local communities. The civil war led to a breakdown of traditional land conflict resolution mechanisms between pastoralist groups and between pastoralist and agricultural communities. The peace resulted in the creation of new boundaries between states and counties, many of which were established with limited or no consultation with affected populations. Migration from rural to urban areas, and the return of refugees and internally displaced persons, have put pressure on municipalities and traditional communities to expand or relocate people.
To address the above problems and conflicts, UN HABITAT is partnering with the Southern Sudan Land Commission to provide technical assistance and develop dispute-resolution mechanisms to resolve a range of land disputes in three Southern Sudan states. CDR Partner Christopher Moore is a senior member of the UN HABITAT team working on this issue.
Among the issues to be resolved are: boundaries between states and counties, pastoralist land and water issues, pastoralist and agricultural community interface problems, municipal acquisition of traditional lands, land grabbing, urban development and removal of informal settlements.
For more information on CDR’s Sudan project, contact Chris Moore at 1-800-MEDIATE or cmoore@mediate.org.
