Vice President Dr. James Wani Igga presides over an Economic Cluster meeting on Thursday. The meeting reviewed proposals on economic recovery, public sector salaries and fiscal sustainability. Photo: Office of the Vice President for Economic Cluster.

The Economic Cluster chaired by Vice President Dr. James Wani Igga has lifted restrictions on cash withdrawals, ending a directive that limited customers to withdrawing no more than 10 million South Sudanese Pounds from commercial banks.

The limit was imposed by the Bank of South Sudan in September 2024 on cash withdrawals of 10 million South Sudanese Pounds (SSP) for public institutions, government agencies, companies and individuals.

Under the directive, withdrawals above that amount were to be processed through bank transfers, interbank transactions or other electronic payment channels instead of cash.

The decision to remove the restriction followed a meeting on Wednesday in which the Economic Cluster reviewed proposals aimed at restoring economic stability, addressing delays in public sector salaries and strengthening fiscal sustainability.

The proposals were presented by the Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Daniel Kuol Ayulo.

Speaking to journalists after the meeting, the Cluster’s spokesperson, Lily Albino Akol, said members agreed that restrictions preventing customers from accessing their money should be lifted without delay.

“The cluster resolves to, one, lift the restrictions on withdrawal by the commercial banks, the withdrawal of monies that individuals have in all these banks. And the cluster also instructed the Bank of South Sudan as well as the Minister of Finance to address this matter and consider it a matter of urgency.

“And so, they will also convene meetings with all the concerned institutions, specifically the commercial banks, soon to get out clear strategies on how to implement the lift on the restrictions that are imposed by the commercial banks,” she said.

Akol said the Cluster instructed the Bank of South Sudan and the Ministry of Finance and Planning to treat the matter as a priority by convening meetings with commercial banks and other relevant institutions to develop clear implementation measures.

She said the objective is to ensure that individuals are able to withdraw their funds without the limitations currently imposed by commercial banks.

“The cluster also resolves to re-create once again the implementation of the resolution of the cluster as well as the resolution of the Council of Ministers, and that’s about non-statutory tax exemptions,” she added.

In addition to the banking reforms, the Economic Cluster resolved to reinforce the implementation of previous decisions by both the Cluster and the Council of Ministers concerning non-statutory tax exemptions.

The government says the measures form part of a broader economic recovery strategy aimed at improving financial stability, enhancing public confidence in the banking sector and ensuring more effective implementation of fiscal policies.