Mamer Abraham
Africa-Press – South-Sudan. The Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Deng Dau Deng, has pledged the government’s commitment to fighting graft.
Dau held a meeting with a high-level delegation from the Eastern and Southern African Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG) on Wednesday, where he affirmed the country’s commitment to implementing anti-money laundering and counter-financing terrorist measures.
Deng assured the group that the government implement laws to prevent money laundering following the request from the Eastern and Southern African Anti-Money Laundering Group.
Bopelokgale Soko, who spoke on behalf of the group, said they agreed on various approaches to fight money laundering and terrorist financing.
“The meeting was fruitful in the fact that we were able to come up with actionable items. It actually demonstrated the political commitment of South Sudan’s government to fight money laundering and terrorist financing,” she said.
On August 14, the US Department of State issued a business advisory accusing South Sudan of not implementing the peace agreement in letter and spirit.
Matthew Miller, the Spokesperson of the US Department of State, said South Sudan had failed to implement economic reforms and public financial management commitments found in the peace agreement.
He further said the government lacked transparency and accountability in the management of oil sector, warning its citizens to be careful with the business environment.
“The absence of significant progress over the original transition period, and the transitional government’s continued failure to adhere to its own laws in the transparent management of its oil revenue could adversely impact U.S. businesses, individuals, and other persons and their operations in South Sudan and the region,” Miller explained.
The ministry for foreign affairs acknowledged the challenges and gave an assurance that the government would fast-track the implementation of the economic reforms and public financial management
“The government of South Sudan acknowledges that there are still challenges and gaps in the implementation of the R-ARCSS, especially in the areas of economic reforms and public financial management,” the statement from the ministry stated.
Despite the grave consequences linked to this advisory, the ministry called upon investors from the United States to come to the country and invest in agriculture, mining, tourism, infrastructure, energy, and telecommunications.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
For More News And Analysis About South-Sudan Follow Africa-Press
