South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Waure Eddy
Health workers in the restive Nagero County in Western Equatoria State have gone on strike demanding unpaid salaries.
Speaking to this newspaper on Tuesday, Martin Karmilo, Clinical Officer at Nagero County Primary Health Care Center revealed that government-employed health workers in Nagero have not received their salaries for the past 16 months.
He also disclosed that their health allowances for the last six months have been withheld.
The ongoing strike has brought work in18 health facilities to a standstill, leaving many patients affected.
Kamilo further noted that while health workers in neighboring counties have received their payments, those in Nagero continue to wait for theirs.
Lauro Nathaniel Francis, the Health Director for Nagero County, said patients are arriving at health centers in need of urgent medical attention, but with no staff available to attend to them.
Western Equatoria State Minister of Health, James Abdallah Arona, admitted the delay in releasing salaries of the aggrieved health workers and assured that the National Ministry of Health is working to resolve the issue.
Arona attributed the delay to logistical challenges, particularly the insecurity along the road between Tombura and Nagero, which has disrupted the transportation of funds and essential supplies.
The strike has heightened concerns about the already fragile healthcare system in Nagero County, which has been experiencing deadly clashes between the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-in opposition (SPLA-IO) since January 2025.
The fighting displaced thousands of people from their homes.
