South Sudan’s top officials have looted billions of dollars in public funds while most citizens face worsening hunger, the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan said in a report on Tuesday, accusing a “predatory elite” of capturing the state and diverting revenues for personal gain.
“Corruption is killing South Sudanese,” the commission said, adding that basic services are being shouldered by foreign donors as the government fails to provide food, healthcare and education.
The 101-page report highlights the oil-for-roads scheme, saying $1.7 billion of the $2.2 billion allocated between 2021 and 2024 is unaccounted for and about 95% of roads remain unfinished. Investigators linked elements of the programme to firms associated with Benjamin Bol Mel, an ally of President Salva Kiir and now second vice president. The commission also cited “irregular” e-services, including electronic visas, that allegedly funneled tens of millions through politically connected companies such as Crawford Capital Ltd.
Juba rejected the findings, calling them an attempt to “smear the good image” of the country and its leadership.
The UN warned that graft is exacerbating rights abuses and instability, noting 76 of South Sudan’s 79 counties face severe food insecurity. The allegations land amid rising political tensions: last week Justice Minister Ruben Madol said suspended First Vice President Riek Machar had been charged with murder, treason and crimes against humanity over March clashes with federal forces.
Machar and Kiir’s rivalry ignited a civil war in 2013 that killed an estimated 400,000 people and displaced millions. Though a 2018 peace deal created a unity government, renewed fighting in Upper Nile State and arrests of senior figures from Machar’s party have fueled fears the country could slide back into full-scale conflict.