South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
South Sudanese can express a sigh of relief following Tuesday’s announcement of oil resumption starting January 8, 2025.
The Minister of Petroleum, Puot Kang Chol, has given a new gift to the people of South Sudan who have lost the purchasing power, because of the weakening of the South Sudan Pound against the Greenback.
Many families are feeling the heat, as the SSP continues to plummet against foreign currencies. This economic crisis has pushed many people into poverty.
The economy is in a tailspin and it remains until the first oil is shipped through Port Sudan.
The transitional unity government needs to keep in close contact with the warring sides in Sudan, to ensure the resumption of oil production is not disrupted. The government should take serious lessons from this situation, because overreliance on oil revenue weakens it’s capacity to widen the non-revenue tax base.
Non-oil revenue is essential if South Sudan is to wean itself of oil revenue, which is risky to global price shocks and political instability.
The government should also work to improve transparency and accountability in the management of oil revenue.
Several credible reports, have accused senior government officials of siphoning off oil revenues at the expense of the impoverished population.
