With oil sales tied up, South Sudan battles to pay salaries

MANY of South Sudan’s civil servants have not been paid for months as the government has run out of funds, with income from oil exports allocated to servicing loans until 2027, the finance minister and affected workers said.

Government employees demanding salary arrears include members of the security forces, doctors and nurses, according to Finance Minister Agak Achuil.

“The reason why we are not paying the arrears is that the oil money is going towards the payment of loans which have been taken before and paying for some of the priorities of the government,” he told reporters in Juba, the capital. “Where am I going to get the money if the oil has been sold in advance up to 2027?”

The government will allocate oil sales for 2028 and beyond in order to pay salaries for this year, he said.

The finance ministry recently paid the November and December salaries