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$2B ROADS CONSTRUCTION PROJECT: Using Eastern Equatoria Gold at the Expense of Juba-Torit-Nadapal and Other Eastern Equatoria State Roads.

By Pastor Abunerry Ayella.

22-2-2026

Torit. 

All roads within the country demand a facelift and rehabilitation. For over 20 years, South Sudan has continued to suffer under its weak government's plans to provide tangible services over vast, untapped, valuable resources. Where resources such as oil are extracted, funds derived from them are mismanaged with no benefits for the local community. Thousands of dollars disappeared in broad daylight without accountability. These have weakened systems and dragged the country into untenable poverty.

In 2024, Eye Radio reported that the Juba-Torit-Nadapal road construction would commence in December of the same year, a gesture the citizens assumed was a relief. In the news was the World Bank funding the project; until today, we have yet to hear about a feasibility study. Has the Juba-Torit-Nadapal road been forgotten, or was it a nightmare proposal?

This week, the Council of Ministers approved a whopping sum of $2 billion dollars to construct roads majorly in the southwestern parts of the country. Roads such as the Agrey Jaden-Kaya and the Maridi-Yambio and Wau roads featured in the budget, with a short linkage between Lobonok and Moli. This proposal is awesome. The puzzle that remains unsolved is the Juba-Torit-Nadapal road. Why is the government silent about this great hub that connects the country directly to the heart of business, yet it tends to use the gold reserves produced in Torit?

Yes, Torit (EES) has the largest gold reserves in the country. Using the EES’s gold as collateral security for constructing other states' roads is not only unfair, but it is also an utter imbalance. Kapoeta, as the major hub, suffers from poor road networks and health facilities. All roads connecting the counties in Eastern Equatoria deserve better facades, but these have never been considered, even if the state continues to experience both artisanal and illegal mining under the government of Lobong.

With the approval of the $2 billion roads project that excluded the major gold-producing state roads or infrastructural development, the people of Eastern Equatoria deserve clarification as soon as possible. The state cannot continue to be misplaced in the development plans, yet it owns the biggest financial bucket in the country. The state's borders have been manipulated and corrupted without significant returns to the community. The community continues to face the wrath of poverty and insecurities, things they do not expect. Must the people keep silent because the government determines who to serve?

To all the people's representatives in the two parliaments, the Cheetahs seek clarification and transparency in this matter with immediate effect. Tell the youth, the children and the women of Eastern Equatoria, and their elders living in Budi, Ikwotos, Lafon, Kapoeta East, Kapoeta South, Kapoeta North, Magwi and Torit Counties, when will their roads be constructed? There is no need to remain adamant since Torit presents better advantages over other cities if its roads are constructed.

In reality, Torit connects Juba to Uganda and Kenya, the country's immediate suppliers of major commercial and infrastructural materials. Construction of roads within the state can boost food production and immediate supplies to Juba. Torit is also a hotspot for security maintenance. These advantages should not be overlooked by denying Torit proper road development.

The $2 billion roads project is a good proposal, but a poisonous medicine that has inherently suffocated Torit. Using Eastern Equatoria’s gold as collateral security to construct roads in other states is a mistreatment. It is a shame that the two parliaments representing the people have nothing to think about such a good but non-impactful proposal on the producing state. The people of Eastern Equatoria must resist the misappropriation of their resources since their representatives have failed to consider the underlying needs in the state.

End.

Writer, Critic, and Teacher

 

 

 

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