News (Consolidated) - UNSOM

Senior officers of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) and the National Security Service have vowed to strengthen information-sharing and early warning systems and grant UN peacekeepers unhindered movement throughout the Greater Lakes region. “We are committed to work with UNMISS and to…

David Shearer and Emmanuel Kembe Live!’ was an unusual announcement for an unusual artistic collaboration this week, as the head of the UN Mission in South Sudan took to the country’s national television, strumming his guitar and singing along to Emmanuel Kembe’s ‘Lovers in Dangerous Times’ song.…

UNMISS PoC sites Update No.206

Another 37 students have successfully graduated from Hanbit the South Korean vocational training centre in Bor, courtesy of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan. They are now keen to use their carpentry, welding, bakery, agricultural and other skills to make a living. “I am so happy. I have…

“Sharing my skills of dressmaking with women in South Sudan is a rare opportunity for me which will make me very happy for all of my life,” says Mohir Hossad a Bangladeshi UN peacekeeper proactively redefining gender roles in Wau, a town in northwestern South Sudan. Teaching women tailoring is one…

An early morning run was an exciting experience for some 300 peacekeepers this past Sunday, as they ran to convey a message of peace for South Sudan. Organized by Indian peacekeepers, the eight-kilometre ‘run for peace’ brought together men and women from both the civilian and military components of…

Youth in Torit in the Eastern Equatoria region took to the streets last weekend to celebrate International Youth Day, voice their many concerns and express their desire to play a bigger role in the future of the country. “We are calling on the youth of South Sudan in general and in Torit in…

Kofi Annan was a guiding force for good. It is with profound sadness that I learned of his passing. In many ways, Kofi Annan was the United Nations. He rose through the ranks to lead the organization into the new millennium with matchless dignity and determination. Like so many, I was proud to call…

Abandoned shops line the streets of once bustling towns across Ayaci and Magwi County near Torit in the eastern part of South Sudan. Places like Obbo, Pajok, and Pugee appear deserted, save a few women trading what little crops they have cultivated, or small groups of elderly men taking their tea.…

UNMISS PoC sites Update No.207

Dark rain clouds hang over a seven-acre field of crop and green houses, located in an area in Bor, where South Korean peacekeepers serving the United Nations Mission in South Sudan have turned fallow land into a productive farm. A handful of youth are busy in the farm, either tilling or harvesting…

Internally displaced persons, staying next to the permanent base of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan in the suburbs of Yei town, welcome the ongoing peace talks in Sudan but want to see practical results. They urge all parties to honour their professed commitment to ending the conflict and…