Finance minister, Awow Daniel Chuang. (Photo/Office of the President).

Newly appointed finance minister, Awow Daniel Chuang, took oath on Monday as President Salva Kiir directed him and Governor of the Central Bank Dr. James Alic Garang to urgently curb the economic inflation facing the country.

Chuang, a former petroleum minister, takes over from Dr. Barnaba Chol amid economic hardships resulting from dwindling oil export via the crisis-hit Sudan and the Red Sea waters.

“President Kiir expressed confidence in Awou’s long track record of experience and dedication to public service, urging him to implement policies that will lift the economic burden on the people,” Kiir’s office said.

Minister Chuang reportedly acknowledged the “severity of the economic crisis and vowed to take decisive action to curb the hyperinflation and stabilize consumer market prices” across the country.

Engineer Chuang, South Sudan’s 12^th finance minister since independence in 2011, is taking over an inflation-hit economy where civil servants have not been paid salaries for the last seven months.

President Kiir appointed Mr. Chuang on March 15, 2024, to replace Dr. Bak Barnaba Chol, who was sacked after serving only six months in office.

No reason was provided for the removal of Dr. Bak, a renowned economist, although it comes at a time when South Sudan’s pound currency is sharply declining against the US dollar, sending prices skyrocketing.

The new finance minister served as the Minister of Petroleum from June 2019 to March 2020, prior to holding the position of Director General in the Petroleum Sector.

After Kiir removed him as petroleum minister, Chuang was demoted to the position of undersecretary after the establishment of the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity.

During his tenure, the Ministry of Petroleum played a crucial role in the country’s economy, contributing over 90% of South Sudan’s total income through oil production and exportation via pipelines to Port Sudan on the Red Sea.