South Sudanese parties adopt code of conduct ahead of December elections

As South Sudan races against the clock to hold the nation's first national elections in December 2024, an event brought together political actors and civil society representatives to agree upon a Code of Conduct that will govern the actions of political parties.

“The adoption of the Code of Conduct comes at a critical time [...] A code of conduct for political parties [is an] essential ingredient for peaceful elections, as it will assist the parties to demarcate acceptable and prohibited conduct and ensure accountability for actions that are not in line with expectations,”  Ismail Wais, Igad's Special Envoy to South Sudan said. The UN Mission in the country (UNMISS), supported on April 4th, a forum hosted by South Sudan's reconstituted Political Parties Council, as part of efforts to galvanize consensus and political will among parties to the 2018 peace deal.

“UNMISS and the other stakeholders encourage us to support this process to the extent that we are here to see this Code of Conduct today being validated,” J oram Biswaro, ambassador, African Union mission in South Sudan said. Juba is rushing to achieve peace benchmarks  as well as putting in place the technical, logistical, operational, and political framework for a fair electoral process.

The way forward for South Sudan dependents on widespread public participation in peace processes, as well as a robust, competitive space for political parties.

As mandated, UNMISS and regional partners hold regular consultations with political parties.

Through such events, the UN Peacekeeping mission aims to solve outstanding issues and build trust among political players, as part of its mandate to support ongoing peace processes.