The National Legislative Assembly has passed the NGO Bill 2015. The bill provides for the establishment of a framework to regulate registration, coordination and monitoring of activities of Non-Governmental Organizations in the country.
The bill also stipulates that at least 80% of the employees should be nationals, at all levels.
However, civil rights groups earlier warned that the Bill threatens freedom of association by requiring them to register.
They say it subjects civil society organizations to a regulatory body mainly composed of government representatives and members appointed by the government.
This body has broad authority ‘to facilitate and coordinate the work of all national and foreign’ NGOs and ‘to provide policy guidelines for harmonizing their activities with the National Development Plan for South Sudan,’ and the power ‘to receive and consider application for work permits in respect of prospective employees of a registered NGO.’
Earlier, the UN said the NGO Bill also ‘includes burdensome registration and re-registration requirements and criminal penalties for non-compliance with the proposed law’.
However, Thomas Wani Kundu, Chairperson of Information in the assembly, says the bill has not ‘restricted’ the operation of the NGOs.
“What we are after is [that] any NGO operating in the country should open a [bank] account within South Sudan,” Hon Wani stated.
“And number two, [the bill] should observe the employment of the nationals, and it has been put clearly that at least 80% of the employs at all levels should be nationals and this is something normal internationally because NGO’s are coming to render services to our people.”
Hon Wani added that all NGOs are expected to operate according to their respective mandate, adhering to the rules and principles of the country.