South Sudan’s Inter-Party Political Dialogue has been postponed by one week, with the government now setting 24 September 2026 as the new date for talks aimed at addressing political differences ahead of the country’s scheduled December elections.
In a statement dated 16 September, Dr Martin Elia Lomuro, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and Rapporteur of the Inter-Party Dialogue Body, said the dialogue will take place at 10:00 a.m. in the main hall of the Revitalized Transitional National Legislative Assembly.
The ministry said leaders and representatives of political parties signatory to the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) have been informed of the new date.
Embassies, diplomatic missions, regional and international organisations, civil society groups, faith-based organisations and other stakeholders were also asked to take note.
The postponement comes as political leaders face growing pressure to address disagreements surrounding South Sudan’s political transition and preparations for elections scheduled for 22 December 2026.
The dialogue is expected to provide a platform for political parties to discuss the conditions required for a peaceful and democratic electoral process.
But civil society leader Edmund Yakani, Executive Director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), has expressed strong frustration over what he sees as the conduct of South Sudan’s political class and the way political disagreements have been handled.
Speaking ahead of the initially planned dialogue, Yakani said he welcomed dialogue as a means of resolving political differences but insisted that politicians must approach the process seriously.
He criticised what he described as a tendency among political actors to engage in discussions that fail to bring conflicting sides together or address the deeper causes of instability.
“The dialogue have to be a meaningful dialogue, have to be a dialogue that is inclusive,” Yakani said.
For Yakani, the issue is not simply whether politicians meet, but whether the dialogue can produce concrete outcomes that affect the lives and security of ordinary South Sudanese.
He said a process that excludes key conflicting parties risks becoming what he described as a “dialogue of friends”, arguing that such an approach would struggle to produce durable results.
Yakani urged the government and political actors to ensure that the dialogue brings conflicting parties to the same table and addresses issues linked to violence, civilian protection, human rights, rule of law and the delivery of basic services.
He also expressed frustration at political disagreements being allowed to persist while civilians continue to bear the consequences.
“We all agree that dialogue is the only viable option for resolving our political differences … rather than the barrel of the gun,” he said.
The new date gives political parties and stakeholders another week to prepare for the talks, but the key question remains whether the dialogue will produce agreement on a political pathway acceptable to the participating parties.
With the December election date approaching, attention is likely to focus on who participates, which issues are placed on the table and whether the parties can reach common ground on the country’s political and electoral process.
For Yakani, the test of the dialogue will ultimately be whether its outcome goes beyond political speeches and translates into greater security, protection of civilians, respect for human rights and improvements in the lives of South Sudanese.
