Speaking during the opening of 10thRJMEC plenary that brought together Parties to the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) and other stakeholders, RJMEC Interim Chairperson Ambassador Lt. Gen. Augostino Njoroge said: 

“This meeting is important because the extended Pre-Transitional Period is due to end in less than four weeks. Ideally, at this stage we should all be excited with the real prospect of the RTGoNU (Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity) being formed, but unfortunately, we still have a lot of work to do in the days ahead to cross this bridge.”

In his statement to the RJMEC members, the Interim Chairperson highlighted progress made in the cantonment of forces. 

“Out of the 25 designated cantonment sites for the opposition and 10 barracks for government forces, 24 cantonment sites and 6 barracks are operational,” he said. 

However, he stressed the need to fastrack the registration and screening in the remaining sites particularly components of the police and the national security. 

Ambassador Njoroge went on to highlight other critical pending tasks vital to the formation of the RTGoNU. These include the resolution of the number and boundaries of the States, enactment of the Constitutional Amendment Bill and the other Bills, and agreement on allocation of ministerial portfolios.  Others are the submission by the Parties of their nominees for the TNLA (Transitional National Legislative Assembly) to the NCAC (National Constitutional Amendment Committee) and the complete demilitarization of civilian centers.

In his conclusion, the RJMEC Interim Chairperson made the following recommendations:

a.    The Incumbent TGoNU should, as a matter of urgency, availmore andadequate resources to the NPTCtofacilitate on-going cantonment, concurrent training and deployment of forces;

b.   The Parties should meet and resolve the outstanding issue of the number and boundaries of States without further delay;

c.    The leadership of the Parties should meet very soon and agree on what options are available come the 12thNovember deadline and 

d.   The regional and international partners and friends of South Sudan should enhance their financial, political and in-kind support to the full implementation of the R-ARCSS.