South Sudan’s political elites have consistently demonstrated that they are far more interested in power-sharing deals—viewed as a mechanism for resource-sharing and patronage—than in fulfilling their core obligation to protect and provide for their citizens.

The country’s 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) is essentially an elite pact that, while bringing a fragile national ceasefire, has prioritized the transactional interests of the top leaders over substantive governance, security sector reform, and democratic transition.

1. Power-Sharing as a Means to Patronage and Resource Control

The primary function of the R-ARCSS for the competing elites is not to build a stable democracy but to maintain a patronage network sustained by oil wealth.

• The "Elite Bargain": The peace agreement is structured as a top-down, zero-sum game that allocates ministerial positions, commissions, and governorships based on quotas agreed upon by the main political and military factions (SPLM-in-Government (SPLM-IG) led by President Salva Kiir and the SPLM-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) led by Riek Machar). This system ensures that the most powerful individuals get their "share" of the state's resources.

• Oil Dependency and Corruption: South Sudan remains almost entirely dependent on oil revenue. The power-sharing deal, therefore, becomes a mechanism for its signatories to divide the spoils of the state. As long as this arrangement keeps the elites flush with cash and positions, they have an incentive to maintain the appearance of peace, even as the country's public services collapse. Reports indicate that elites are preoccupied with remaining in power and enriching themselves from the country's vast wealth, demonstrating a predatory preoccupation over public welfare.

• Stalled Implementation: The two-year extension of the transitional government, approved in 2022, was a clear sign of this prioritization. The political parties have repeatedly failed to conscientiously implement the core, state-building provisions of the R-ARCSS, including unifying the armed forces, establishing transitional justice institutions (like the Hybrid Court), and developing a permanent constitution. These delays are tactical, as completing these reforms would threaten the elites' current power monopoly.

2. Failure to Address Citizen Welfare and Security

While the political elites negotiate ministerial portfolios, the condition of the average South Sudanese citizen remains dire, proving that protection and service delivery are secondary concerns.

• Human Rights and Civil Liberties Erosion: The government has failed to protect basic civil, political, and socio-economic rights. Legislation passed in July 2024, for example, preserved the abusive powers of detention routinely exploited by the National Security Service, reflecting a troubling disregard for basic rights and boding ill for a peaceful transition.

• Non-Implementation of Security Sector Reform: The most crucial security provision—the comprehensive unification of armed forces—remains stalled. The SPLA remains a collection of ethnically aligned militias, not a single, professional national army. This failure directly contributes to the persistent inter-communal and subnational violence that continues to plague states like Jonglei and Unity, proving that the elites' pact at the national level offers little genuine security to the grassroots population.

• Defunding of Public Services: Despite the oil wealth flowing to the ruling elites, most civil servants are unpaid, and essential public services like schools, health clinics, and courts are receiving only woefully inadequate budget allocations. The political deadlock and paralysis caused by elite mistrust lead to a crisis of service delivery, demonstrating that power-sharing has not translated into good governance.

   

3. The Unaddressed Need for Justice

The elites' fear of accountability is another factor that prioritizes their political survival over the nation's healing.

• Transitional Justice Blocked: The R-ARCSS included provisions for establishing a Commission for Truth, Reconciliation and Healing and a Hybrid Court to address the atrocities of the civil war. However, these institutions have been consistently stalled, largely for political reasons. The elites, many of whom have blood on their hands, have little incentive to implement mechanisms that could eventually lead to their own prosecution.

• Shrinking Civic Space: The political elites view any form of citizen-led protest or civil society mobilization as a threat to their fragile power-sharing arrangements. This often leads to a shrinking civic space, as political leaders prioritize control and stability within their pact over the democratic participation and rights of the citizenry.

In essence, the South Sudanese elite are engaged in a transactional form of politics where peace is defined by the agreement on how to share resources and positions, rather than by the security and welfare of their people. This unhealthy continuity of top-down arrangements will persist until legitimacy rests on elections and genuine national institutions rather than on negotiated quotas.