A researcher has told a US Senate hearing on South Sudan that the current conflict is a result of competition over access to state resources.

John Prendagast of the Enough Project says there was a political dispute between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy, but insists that resources were the underlying catalyst.

In a testimony before the senate foreign relations committee in Washington DC last evening, Mr Prendagast said the factions of the SPLM have been willing to loot state assets and murder civilians.

He said they did so because they believed there are no consequences.

The research said the government is using the oil money and loans on oil production to fund the war while the opposition is using private wealth some individuals amassed before the conflict and diaspora contributions.

Mr Prendagast has called for strict sanctions to break the financial networks that he said are being used to fund the war on both sides of the conflict.

He said government officials have been manipulating the exchange rate to gain profits and use a lot of funds for security to keep their system running.

Mr Prendagast said leaders on both sides of the conflict are being driven by greed, resulting into delay in the implementation of the agreement.

The hearing was under the theme: “Independent South Sudan: Failure of Leadership in South Sudan.”

The spokesman of the ministry of foreign affairs, Mawien Makol, criticized the topic yesterday, saying South Sudan was progressing well with the implementation of the peace agreement.