Over the weekend, South Sudan's government postponed a long delayed national election to December 2026, highlighting the challenges facing the country's fragile peace process.

Daniel Akech Thiong , Senior South Sudan Analyst at the Crisis Group says this was expected for the government to make this decision.  According to Thiong,  South Sudan leaders, who signed the 2018 peace agreement, agreed to extend the transitional period by two more years and part of the agreement gives the parties the power to extend their stay in power iteratively.

He added that even given another decade, it’s unlikely South Sudan would be ready in a way that would satisfy most stakeholders. Previous attempts at holding elections have failed due to instability and insecurity.

“However, despite concerns about potential election-related violence, the benefits for the people of South Sudan of holding the polls outweigh the drawbacks. Most citizens believe elections would help address many of South Sudan’s problems, including corruption and lack of service delivery,” said  Thiong.

--ChannelAfrica--