On 19–20 August 2026, the Max Planck Foundation for International Peace and the Rule of Law delivered a two-day civic education programme in Juba to equip key institutional actors with technical legal knowledge necessary for meaningful participation in subsequent public consultations on the constitution-making process led by the National Constitutional Review Commission (NCRC).
This event marked the conclusion of a broader outreach series with national institutions of South Sudan, conducted to support the NCRC’s mandate of advancing South Sudan’s permanent constitution-making process. Previous workshops engaged members of the legal fraternity, alongside grassroots civil society actors, and members of national and state legislatures. This final workshop specifically targeted members of the executive and independent commissions.
The programme commenced with keynote addresses from Hon. Dr Martin Elia Lomuro (Minister for Cabinet Affairs), Mr Lothar Jaschke (Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to South Sudan), and Hon. Dr Riang Yer Zuor (Chairperson of the NCRC). Additional high-level attendees included the Ministers of Parliamentary Affairs, Labour, Livestock & Fisheries, and Mining (previously Minister of Federal Affairs).
Over two days, participants engaged with the Max Planck team and NCRC members on key legal and constitutional questions regarding the future permanent constitution of South Sudan. Sessions focused on the principles of the permanent constitution-making process, the foundations of federalism, design options for systems of government, allocation of powers, inter-governmental interactions, and balancing subnational autonomy with federal executive power in federations. By bridging institutional expertise and civil society engagement, the programme established a collaborative foundation for inclusive public consultations led by the NCRC.
The programme was generously funded by the European Union under the project titled ‘Supporting Constitution-Making, Legal Harmonisation and Judicial Reform in South Sudan’.