A convoy of Governor Jadalla leaves Juba for the counties. October 7, 2024. (Photo: CES Governor's office/Facebook).

Central Equatoria Governor Augustino Jadalla departed Juba Monday for his first tour to the counties since appointment – a visit expected to give peace assurance to communities and populations returning from refugee camps.

The state has been gripped by multiple crises including displacement caused by the civil war, border issues, farmers-herders conflicts, and fighting between government forces and holdout groups.

Tens of thousands of people who returned home from refugees camps in the region as a result of relative stability are reported to be in need of humanitarian assistance in Lainya, Yei, Kajo-Keji and Morobo counties.

The governor’s tour is aimed at consolidating durable peace, unity, and security in Central Equatoria, according to a statement from his office.

“The Governor is travelling in this significant trip by road because he wants to acquaint himself with the security situation across the State, understand the life of our people and the State road infrastructure,” said Francis Luwala, the Secretary General of the state government.

“This journey is also to give hope to our people on how much the government is concerned about the situation on ground among several reasons”.

Jadalla was accompanied by senior state and national government officials including members of parliament representing different constituencies.

In September, aid group Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) suspended all its outreach activities in Yei, until further notice, following what it termed as a critical security incident involving its staff and staff from a partner organization.

MSF said it strongly condemns the attack against health workers in an area where people already face difficulty accessing healthcare.

Following his appointment in May 2024, Governor Jadalla said he would relocate his office from county to county on monthly basis to “acquaint” himself with the people and “implement the SPLM vision of taking towns to the people.”

During a parliamentary session in September 2024, the governor addressed the recurrent reports of Ugandan encroachment into South Sudan’s Kajo-keji County, attributing it to displacement of natives to refugee camps and “vulnerability of the bordering communities” resulting from lack of services.

According to him, the displacement of the natives to neighboring Uganda coupled with lack of services has led to the border exploitation of the community.

Jadalla said encouraging the return of refugees to Kajo-Keji County, and delivery of services to the community are the two of his most important plans to minimize the border encroachment.