Profile Photo|December 23, 2025, [Photo: Office of the President]

The Council of Ministers has approved plans for South Sudan to host the Nile Basin Day in February, marking the first time the annual event will be celebrated in the country.

The Nile Basin Day commemorates the Nile Basin Initiative, an intergovernmental partnership established in February 22, 1999, to promote sustainable and equitable management of Nile water resources among its member states, including South Sudan.

According to a statement from the Office of the President, quoting the Deputy Minister of Information, the Council of Ministers meeting held yesterday also approved a budget for the event.

The event will be held on February 22, 2026, and is expected to bring together representatives from 11 member states of the Nile Basin Initiative.

The Deputy Minister of Information, David Yau Yau, said the decision followed a memo presented by the Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, James Mawich, on South Sudan’s obligations to regional bodies.

The statement said the Cabinet also directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the Ministry of Finance and Planning to coordinate the settlement of arrears owed to regional and international organisations.

The other members of the Nile Basin Initiative are Burundi, DR Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda, with Eritrea participating as an observer.

South Sudan ratified the Nile Treaty in 2024, officially joining the Nile Basin Initiative.