Joint high-level opening ceremony by RJMEC and the Foundation
On 25 May 2021, the Workshop on the Permanent Constitution-Making Process of South Sudan was officially launched at the Freedom Hall in Juba, South Sudan. The Workshop, entitled, “Designing the Path to a Durable Constitution for South Sudan” was officially opened by the His Excellency Salva Kiir, President of the Republic of South Sudan and the keynote address was delivered by His Excellency Abdalla Hamdok, Prime Minister of the Republic of Sudan who is also Chairperson of the IGAD Assembly of Heads of State and Government. The launch saw broad participation and addresses from delegates of the United Nations, the African Union, IGAD, IPF and various country representatives in South Sudan. Also present at the launch were the five Vice Presidents, Ministers, Members of Parliament and other government officials of South Sudan.
In his address, President Kiir expressed his gratitude to the Max Planck Foundation for accepting the invitation to facilitate the Workshop on the Permanent Constitution-Making Process, further noting that the Foundation had worked with South Sudan for many years, including during the drafting of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005. Both H.E. President Kiir and H.E. Prime Minister Hamdok underscored the importance of the workshop to the Permanent Constitution-Making Process for South Sudan.
The substantive discussions of the Workshop continued on 26-28 May, facilitated by representatives of the Foundation. The Workshop deliberations covered key thematic areas of constitutional process design including the constitutional drafting process, the roles and mandates of institutions/mechanisms in the Constitution-Making Process, public participation and the sequencing of the Constitution-Making Process.
As was noted by the HE President in his speech and stipulated in Article 6.9 of the Peace Agreement (R-ARCSS), the outcome and resolutions of the workshop form the basis of the legislation to govern the Permanent Constitution-making process in South Sudan.
Activities of the Foundation to facilitate the Workshop have been funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.