Alfred Futuyo Karaba, Governor Western Equatoria state. (Courtesy).

The Governor of Western Equatoria State has warned against dependence on UN agencies and international organizations for humanitarian and developmental assistance.

Alfred Futuyo Karaba was speaking during the inauguration of the Mundri PHCC maternity Ward last Thursday.

Governor Futuyo questioned why the South Sudanese people should still be relying on humanitarian assistance – 12 years after the country’s independence.

He says the country can only be fully independent if its people are not self-reliant.

“Why we are still asking NGOs and UN agencies for everything? They not part of South Sudan, partners are not part of South Sudan,’ said Futuyo in Mundri town last week.

“We are still saying, let partners do this and that and let also UN and NGO”s do this, and also we are asking NGOs to clear for you the roads that leading to your house, it cannot be like that and is not good completely.”

Western Equatoria State has a rich agricultural land, and is reportedly the only state producing most of its food in the country.

According to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, about 7.7 million people in South Sudan are likely to face acute food insecurity during April-July 2023.

The governor called on political leaders to stop power wrangles and deliver service to the people.

“We say, let them open for us secondary school, and open for us university,  to do what with it? So when you studied university you did what with that? We as politicians are the ones fooling our people.”

“We are always assembling our people, and instead of encouraging them to cultivate, we are talking about bad things and people like Ngere was a bad person. We are the ones who fooled our people.”