UN Report: Corruption in South Sudan Fuels Human Rights Crisis and Collapse of Services

The UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan has released a devastating new report exposing how systemic government corruption and predatory practices by political elites have unleashed a profound human rights crisis across the country. The report, titled “Plundering a Nation: How Rampant Corruption Unleashed a Human Rights Crisis in South Sudan,” draws on two years of independent investigations and paints a bleak picture of a state hollowed out by looting while its people are left to starve, die from preventable diseases, and live without basic services.

Corruption as the Engine of Collapse

The Commission found that corruption in South Sudan is not incidental but structural and deliberate, serving as the engine of the country’s economic and social decline since independence in 2011. Chairperson Yasmin Sooka stated bluntly: “Our report tells the story of the plundering of a nation: corruption is not incidental, it is the engine of South Sudan’s decline. It is driving hunger, collapsing health systems, and causing preventable deaths, as well as fuelling deadly armed conflict over resources.”

Since 2011, government oil inflows have exceeded $25.2 billion, a staggering amount in one of the world’s poorest countries. Yet, the Commission’s analysis shows that systematic diversion of both oil and non-oil revenues through off-budget schemes, opaque contracts, and patronage networks has left little to fund essential services such as healthcare, education, food security, and justice.

Collapse of Basic Services

The report details how corruption directly undermines human rights:

• Health: The Ministry of Health received only 19% of its budget allocation between 2020–2024, leaving hospitals underfunded, medical supplies scarce, and preventable diseases rampant. Three-quarters of child deaths are considered preventable.

• Education: Schools remain chronically underfunded, leaving millions of children without access to education.

• Food Security: The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security received just 7% of its allocation over four years, exacerbating famine conditions.

• Social Welfare: The Ministry of Gender and Social Welfare was allocated only $3.7 million across four years, effectively abandoning the most vulnerable.

In stark contrast, the Ministry of Presidential Affairs overspent its budget by nearly 600% (an additional $557 million) between 2020 and 2024, reflecting how political elites prioritize patronage over public welfare.

High-Level Corruption Schemes

The Commission highlighted several emblematic corruption schemes, including:

• “Oil for Roads” Programme: An estimated $2.2 billion siphoned off-budget into political patronage networks, with companies linked to Benjamin Bol Mel—appointed Vice President in February 2025—failing to deliver most of the promised roads.

• Non-Oil Revenue Diversions: Through companies like Crawford Capital Ltd, non-oil revenue collections largely bypass government accounts. At the same time, illegal levies on humanitarian operations have obstructed critical food aid distribution.

Political Upheaval and Broken Peace Agreement

The 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan, designed to strengthen financial accountability and stabilize the country, has largely failed. Reforms outlined in the agreement remain unimplemented, and impunity for corruption continues.

Recent political developments further undermine the agreement:

• On 11 September 2025, the government announced charges against First Vice President Riek Machar, who has been arbitrarily detained since March 2025. His party has fractured, with many leaders jailed or forced into exile.

• Key government posts have been filled through nepotism, including the President’s daughter and Vice President Bol Mel’s wife, consolidating elite control.

Commissioner Carlos Castresana Fernández warned: “The diversions are not abstract budget failures – they translate into preventable deaths, widespread malnutrition, and mass exclusion from education. Nepotism and kleptocracy in government are further entrenching. This sabotages credible elections and the political transition.”

International and Legal Implications

The Commission emphasized that corruption in South Sudan is not only a governance failure but also a human rights violation recognized under international law. It cited obligations under the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which requires governments to allocate “maximum available resources” toward fulfilling citizens’ rights.

South Sudan also remains at the bottom of the UN Human Development Index and the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index, underscoring the scale of its governance failures.

Call for Urgent Action

The Commission’s report sets out 54 recommendations aimed at ending impunity and addressing systemic corruption. Key recommendations include:

• Accountability for corruption and economic crimes, including prosecution of implicated officials.

• Reallocation of resources to meet essential needs in healthcare, education, and food security.

• Full implementation of financial reforms outlined in the Revitalized Peace Agreement.

• Stronger international oversight to ensure that donor support does not enable corruption but directly benefits citizens.

Sooka concluded with a warning: “South Sudan’s leaders must end the systemic plunder and impunity. When public revenue becomes private fortune, peace cannot hold. For the transition to survive, accountability for economic crimes and an investment in human rights are indispensable.”

The report was launched at a press conference in Nairobi, fulfilling the Commission’s Human Rights Council mandate to document abuses. It represents one of the most comprehensive indictments to date of South Sudan’s entrenched kleptocracy and its devastating human toll.