Breaking the Cycle of Perpetual Transition in South Sudan: A Critical Assessment of Peace Prospects and Processes Dialogue

The three day dialogue was jointly hosted by the Center for Strategic and Policy Studies (CSPS) and UNMISS, who also generously funded the event, and convened on 24-26 June 2026 at Palm Africa Hotel in Juba. The dialogue was attended by representatives of civil society – including peace advocacy, youth and women's networks, COTAL, and faith-based organizations – as well as officials from national government institutions and agencies, Parties to R-ARCSS, diplomatic missions, international NGOs, and regional and international partners (e.g. UNMISS, AU, IGAD, R-JMEC). The dialogue was facilitated by experts, practitioners and academics.

Objectives

The objectives of the dialogue were as follows:

• Understand how and why implementation has failed through the "political" lens of shared state power,
• Through amicable and collaborative dialogue, consider what are the conditions under which implementation becomes more feasible and likely.
• Develop a shared understanding of the barriers and challenges of peace implementation, and:
• Arrive at more clarity as to concrete ways forward for successful implementation of R-ARCSS.