Southern Sudan President to be awarded degree

By Mangoa Mosota

Southern Sudanese President Salva Kiir will be among hundreds of graduands to receive degrees at a Kisumu based university.

Mr Kiir will on Sunday receive a honorary degree from Great Lakes University of Kisumu (Gluk) for his liberation work in Southern Sudan.

The institution’s Vice-Chancellor Dan Kaseje said Kiir, who is also the Vice-President of Sudan, will be awarded a doctorate degree on Letters.

"We are honouring him for his 25-year struggle to bring peace to Southern Sudan," said Prof Kaseje, a former rebel leader.

He said the Sudanese leader is expected to arrive in Kisumu Saturday evening.

"He will be the guest of honour during the graduation," said the VC.

He said more than 200 graduands would be awarded with degrees, diplomas and certificates in public health, nursing and nutrition.

Scientific conference

Kaseje spoke to The Standard yesterday on the sidelines of a scientific conference organised by Gluk. The forum has drawn more than 300 participants from different parts of the world.

Kiir, 58, became the President of Southern Sudan in August 2005, after the demise of Dr John Garang a helicopter crash.

Kiir succeeded Garang by virtue of being deputy leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement

Kiir was involved in the early stages of negotiating the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which ended 21 years of civil war.

The SPLM leader joined the southern rebellion in Sudan in the late 1960s.

Kiir rose to become a low-ranking officer before joining the Sudanese army. He is from the Dinka tribe.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who was recently indicted by the International Criminal Court, has often been accused of reneging on the CPA.