JUBA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Trade between South Sudan and its northern neighbor Sudan has not been affected by political events in Khartoum as goods continue to flow to Juba, an official said on Wednesday.
Simon Akuei Deng, secretary general of the South Sudan Chamber of Trade, Industry and Commerce said that trade was flowing smoothly across the border of the two countries despite ongoing political bickering between the ruling Transitional Military Council (TMC) and opposition parties over the structure of the transitional government.
"So far the conflict has not affected whatever has been coming into South Sudan because it is centered in Khartoum. The food that came from Sudan is already In Mangalla," Akuei told journalists in Juba.
South Sudan imports 90 percent of its food from neighboring Uganda, Sudan and Kenya. This further has been boosted by the reopening of the border between the two Sudans in June 2018.
Juba also transports its crude oil that finances 95 percent of its fiscal budget through Port Sudan.
The UN recently estimated that 6.96 million South Sudanese will face acute levels of food insecurity by the end of July, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) update released by the government of South Sudan in collaboration with the UN agencies.
Akuei also acknowledged that despite the South Sudan currency gaining value against the U.S dollar, prices of goods remained high hitting hard the poor. South Sudan inflation hit double digits due to the five year old conflict reducing oil production in its northern oil fields.
"As much as our currency has been fluctuating for some reason, there is need to work with the current prices. Our people are suffering. The purchasing power is very low while for some reasons some of the members of the private sector continue to increase prices even if the dollar is stable in the market," he said.
South Sudan is currently implementing the revitalized peace deal signed in September 2018 in Ethiopia to end about five years of conflict that killed tens of thousands and displaced over two million people.
