What Is Entrepreneurship?

Entrepreneurship is the process of designing, launching and managing a new business or investment, while taking into consideration the financial and personal risks involved, with the aim of generating a profit from the initial capital investment.

According to insights from the World Bank’s surveys on businesses and enterprises in South Sudan, we are encouraged to recognize that there is a huge amount of hope and potential for economic growth and recovery in our young Republic of South Sudan.

However, there are severe and discouraging structural and economic challenges that prevent potential entrepreneurs from even imagining starting a business in South Sudan.

So, what are these fears, or what can we describe as our sources of cowardice when it comes to entrepreneurship?

The Fears Behind Starting a Business in South Sudan

Economic Instability

ResearchGate and various economic studies recognize economic instability as a serious challenge to entrepreneurship in South Sudan.

Every day, we are faced with volatile and aggressive inflation, with the South Sudanese pound losing its value. We are, in many ways, milking a cow with one teat—the so-called single-source economy, heavily dependent on oil, instead of having a diversified economy.

All these challenges eventually make the lactating cow, or what the Dinka people called the “milking cow”—such as, Konyo Konyo Market—“kick” local consumers where it hurts the most: their pockets.

Consumers struggle to afford basic commodities because of rising prices that rarely come down. Therefore, when you think about starting a business, your money may lose significant value even before you have rented a shop or purchased goods to sell.

This economic instability creates uncertainty for anyone considering investing their savings in a new business.

Deficiencies in Infrastructure

Infrastructure remains another major challenge to entrepreneurship.

Talk about poor roads, unreliable and expensive electricity, limited telecommunications coverage and persistent network problems across large parts of South Sudan. All these deficiencies make local trade and business operations extremely difficult.

For an entrepreneur, transporting goods from one location to another can become expensive and unpredictable. Unreliable electricity increases operating costs, while poor telecommunications infrastructure makes communication, digital transactions and modern business practices more difficult.

As a result, what should be an ordinary business activity can sometimes feel like a punishment.

Limited Access to Finance and Credit

Another major challenge is the lack of accessible loans and microcredit facilities for entrepreneurs.

Access to finance is either limited or, in some cases, perceived as being politically motivated. However, let us focus particularly on the underdeveloped banking system in South Sudan.

When there are limited financial institutions willing or able to provide loans to small entrepreneurs, the potential business owner begins to think:

“I will save enough money and start my own business.”

But then the economic crisis intervenes. With the instability of the South Sudanese pound and limited liquidity in commercial banks, even the value of personal savings can be significantly eroded.

Alternatively, an entrepreneur may begin thinking about obtaining an informal loan from someone such as Prof. Abraham Mabior Rioch. But that can also be risky. If the business collapses under the weight of the economic challenges, the borrower may find themselves facing a legal dispute with the lender.

Therefore, without affordable and accessible financing mechanisms, many potential entrepreneurs never move beyond the idea stage.

Insecurity and Crime

Insecurity and crime are another major source of fear for entrepreneurs.

It is common knowledge that shops and businesses have suffered destruction and losses in different parts of the country. There have also been incidents in Juba where business communities and traders have been targeted, with shops reportedly looted or burned.

There have also been fire outbreaks in commercial areas such as Customs Market, resulting in significant losses for entrepreneurs.

All these incidents trigger fear in the minds of potential entrepreneurs because they raise serious concerns about the security of their daily business operations and the protection of their assets.

For someone investing their entire savings in a shop, business equipment or stock, the possibility of losing everything through insecurity, looting or fire can be a powerful deterrent to entrepreneurship.

Regulatory & Bureaucratic Challenges

The regulatory system in South Sudan also poses serious challenges to entrepreneurship.

I am not a lawyer, but simply start a business and you may find yourself facing unpredictable government business regulations, bureaucratic complexities, inconsistent taxation and other administrative hurdles.

All these challenges can make the process of establishing and operating a business unnecessarily difficult.

For a potential entrepreneur, uncertainty over regulations, taxes, licenses and administrative requirements can discourage investment before the business has even started operating.

Social, Cultural & Personal Fears

Finally, to wrap up this part of the discussion on the fears behind starting a business in South Sudan, we also need to look into ourselves. Why have foreigners invaded our commodity market? What is wrong?

There is a fear of stigmatization and social judgment.

Consider the story of a man who started a toilet business in Juba in 2007, at a time when there were very few toilets in the city. A business that may have appeared unusual or even embarrassing at the time could, in reality, have been addressing a genuine need in society.

This raises an important question: Are we sometimes afraid to pursue business ideas simply because society does not immediately understand or appreciate them?

There is also cultural pride. Sometimes, people who were poor yesterday suddenly become wealthy, making others believe that they too should become rich quickly and without the long-term effort required to build a business.

The desire for free money, the expectation that someone will simply give us money, and, in some cases, laziness can kill the motivation to start or even think seriously about starting a business.

Entrepreneurship requires patience, creativity, resilience, risk-taking and a willingness to start small. Changing this mindset is therefore as important as addressing the external economic challenges.

What Are the Key Opportunities for Doing Business in South Sudan?

Despite these fears and challenges, South Sudan also presents significant opportunities for entrepreneurship.

Diversifying the Economy

South Sudan needs to move away from a single-source economy that depends heavily on oil and toward a diversified economy.

Agriculture should become a key component of the economic development of the Republic of South Sudan. At the same time, the country can encourage the growth of the service economy, manufacturing, factories, digital businesses and e-commerce.

All these sectors offer significant potential for entrepreneurs who are willing to identify gaps in the market and develop businesses that respond to real needs.

Economic diversification is therefore not only a national policy objective—it can also become a major source of entrepreneurial opportunity.

Growing Domestic Demand for Locally Produced Food

There is already a rising domestic demand for quality food and edible commodities.

Rather than relying heavily on imported and sometimes stale or low-quality raw foods brought into the country, there is an opportunity to produce more food locally.

Developing local and organic food production could create an entire chain of economic activity—from farmers in rural areas to processors, transporters, wholesalers, retailers and consumers in urban areas.

This could create a strong rural-to-urban food supply chain, while also creating employment and business opportunities along the way.

Strategic Regional Location

The strategic location of the Republic of South Sudan is another major opportunity.

South Sudan borders six countries in the East and Central African region, including Sudan. These geographical connections create significant potential for cross-border commerce and regional trade.

The country’s border connections can support the movement of goods and services and provide opportunities for entrepreneurs involved in logistics, transportation, agriculture, trade, manufacturing and other sectors.

This remains one of the most untapped business opportunities available to South Sudan as we speak.

A Vibrant and Young Population

Finally, South Sudan has a vibrant young population that is creative, energetic and capable of developing innovative business ideas.

Given a favorable business environment, access to finance and the right support systems, young South Sudanese can become a major force in entrepreneurship and economic development.

However, creativity alone is not enough.

We still need to undertake targeted business skills training to equip young people and potential entrepreneurs with the knowledge required to develop, manage and sustain businesses.

Training in areas such as financial management, business planning, marketing, digital skills, accounting and leadership can help turn innovative ideas into sustainable businesses.

Conclusion

The fears surrounding entrepreneurship in South Sudan are real: economic instability, inflation, weak infrastructure, limited access to finance, insecurity, regulatory challenges and social attitudes can all discourage people from taking the risk of starting a business.

But these challenges should not make us blind to the opportunities.

South Sudan has land, a young population, growing domestic demand, strategic regional connections and enormous room for economic diversification.

The question, therefore, is not simply whether South Sudan has opportunities for entrepreneurship. The opportunities are clearly there.

The bigger question is:

How do we create an environment where South Sudanese entrepreneurs are confident enough to identify those opportunities, take calculated risks and turn their ideas into sustainable businesses?

That requires action from entrepreneurs themselves, financial institutions, government, the private sector, development partners and society as a whole.

The future of entrepreneurship in South Sudan will depend not only on overcoming the fears that hold people back, but also on having the courage, skills and support to pursue the opportunities that already exist.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Hon. Ustaz Emmanuel Monychol Akop is the publisher and editor-in-chief of The Dawn newspaper, as well as a board member of the South Sudan Media Authority. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not reflect the official position or editorial stance of Eye Radio.