Billions stolen in South Sudan corruption: UN report

South Sudanese President Salva Kiir (R) shakes hands with First Vice President Riek Machar as he attends his swearing-in ceremony at the State House in Juba,on February 22, 2020. [AFP] South Sudan government officials have stolen billions of dollars in oil money since the country gained independence in 2011, a United Nations report said on Tuesday. The government saw oil inflows worth $25.2 billion in that time and yet "hardly any money reaches essential services" like health and education in one of the world's poorest countries, according to the report by the Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan, acting for the UN Human Rights Council. "Our report tells the story of the plundering of a nation," said Yasmin Sooka, chair of the commission, in a statement. "It is driving hunger, collapsing health systems and causing preventable deaths, as well as fuelling deadly armed conflict over resources," she added. The report details "systemic government corruption and brazen predation", including in the "Oil for Roads" programme that was supposed to be a flagship development scheme. The programme was the largest recipient of oil money -- $2.2 billion between 2021 and 2024 -- of which $1.7 billion is "unaccounted for", according to the report, since roads were either not completed, extremely overpriced or finished far below promised standards. The money was funnelled through construction companies owned by Benjamin Bol Mel, the report said. Bol Mel has emerged as the most likely successor to President Salva Kiir, having risen quickly through the political ranks to become a vice-president in February. The UN report was released a day after Bol Mel announced on X that he had been promoted to the rank of general in the National Security Service. "The diversions are not abstract budget failures -- they translate into preventable deaths, widespread malnutrition and mass exclusion from education," said Carlos Castresana Fernandez, a member of the rights commission. "South Sudan's international partners must make clear that this situation is unacceptable." A long government response was included in the report, which accused the commission of relying on "unverified information" from journalists, civil society groups and UN agencies. It comes as a power-sharing deal between Kiir and his long-time rival, Riek Machar, has been unravelling, threatening to return the young nation to a civil war that left 400,000 dead in the 2010s. Machar was last week charged with treason and crimes against humanity over an ethnic militia's attack on a military base in March. Machar's supporters say the charges are part of efforts to remove him from the political scene and on Monday called for an armed mobilisation to carry out "regime change".

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