BY SOLOMON DIBABA
A few days back a high level South Sudanese delegation composed of the leaders of the police forces of the country paid a working visit to Ethiopia to discuss issues of bilateral security cooperation, capacity building and exchange of information on security and related issues.
They took up these major issues with their Ethiopian counterpart and vowed to further depend the security and peace building cooperation between the two countries.
This visit therefore prompted me to share my views on the most outstanding issues of bilateral concerns between the two countries. A glimpse into the background of the relations between the two countries will help us to grasp the bigger picture.
The relationship between Ethiopia and the Republic of South Sudan cannot fully be comprehended only in the context of the bilateral relations between Ethiopia and the youngest state of the world.
In fact, the relations between the two countries are dictated not only by domestic national factors but also by external factors that not only affect the two countries but also other regions of the Horn of Africa.
To have a clear preview of the relations between the two countries, it is therefore very imperative to have a bird’s eye view of the socio-economic, cultural and political factors and settings that heavy influence the comprehensive relations between the two countries.
Both countries occupy an extremely crucial geopolitical position in the Horn of Africa which comprises the states of Ethiopia, Somalia, Djibouti and Eritrea while South Sudan and the Republic of Sudan are also directly affected by the Horn’s politico-economic factors.
The security situation in this sub-region is highly complex due to several socio-economic, political and geo-political factors which I would briefly explain.
The sub-region is rich in natural resources including salt, potash and diamonds and hydroelectric power resources and tourism and livestock as well.
More than 40 percent of the world’s crude oil passes through the Aden-Suez Canal route, making the Horn of Africa one of the world’s most critical regions in terms of security. The Horn of Africa is home to more than 282 million multi-racial and multi-ethic inhabitants.
The relationships between the countries in the Horn of Africa have been significantly influenced by the international and regional power tri-polarity over the last two decades.
At the end of the 20th century the newly established State of Eritrea and Ethiopia, attempted to create stability in the region. However, the war that broke out between these two countries (1998-2008) and the expansion of terrorist groups and piracy in the region brought about new security threats which made the sub-region volatile and susceptible to the influence of international and regional powers.
The population of the Horn of Africa accounts for approximately a third of the entire African population. The rapidly increasing population in the Horn of Africa (growth rate of approx. 3 percent per annum, compared to the continental growth rate of 2.3 percent p.a.) puts great strain on health and education services and employment figures, and is creating huge challenges for a sustainable economic growth. Besides, conflicts over water resources, grazing lands and farmlands constitute sources of conflicts at local levels.
According to the Institute for Peace and Security Studies of the AAU, and the Horn is one of the regions in the world most affected by conflict. This has a direct impact on population; thus the sub-region has the highest percentage of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDP).
Among the 12.6 million IDP in Africa in 2016, 8.6 million were from East Africa. By the end of 2016, more than a quarter of South Sudan’s population was internally displaced due to intra-state conflict.
Poverty is a major problem in the Horn of Africa especially as it also fuels recruitment by terrorist groups. Somalia has become a center of home-grown terrorist groups such as Al Shabaab.
It has well-established networks with Al Qaida and terrorist groups in Yemen. There is a spread of Yemen-based militants and arms, along with financial flows into Somalia. Up to one million refugees from Somalia are based in Yemen.
There are parallel economic structures in the country which have facilitated regional trade in arms and the smuggling of people and fuel.
Now let me limit my views to the major factors that determine the relationship between Ethiopia and South Sudan. Besides the above factors that determine the bilateral relations between the two countries, the existence of porous borders which encouraged arms trafficking and contraband in other commodities, conflicts between clans in the border areas necessitate much deeper security and development cooperation.
On the other hand, lack of standard infrastructures facilities in South Sudan and the recurrent conflicts between the warning forces led by the vice president Riek Machar and forces loyal to the government led by Salva Kiir Mayardit have seriously complicated the nation building process in the country and had led to alarming social crisis that affected millions of South Sudanese citizens.
Corruption and embezzlement of public fund, lack of accountability in public service deliveries has become a hurdle to smooth running of the financial policy and systems in the country.
Although the Republic of South Sudan had gained independence in 2011, in just the same year in July, a conflict flared up between South Sudan and the Republic of Sudan which led to the deployment of Ethiopian peace keeping contingent pursuant to The UN Security Council Resolution 1990 authorized a United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) under Chapter VII of the UN Charter UNISFA composed of 4250 Ethiopian troops, including civilian police, is unique for many reasons.
Unlike most peacekeeping missions in the World, UNISFA is entirely composed of Ethiopian peace troops. Besides Given the fact that both parties requested the Ethiopian force, the Addis Ababa Agreement on Abyei expressed the trust Ethiopia enjoys in both Khartoum and Juba.
It is to be recalled that Ethiopia brokered a peace treaty in 1972 between the Aghanana Movement and the Sudanese Government of those days inn a bid to solicit a relative autonomy for South Sudan.
Ethiopia’s role as a peacemaker did not spare it from spillover effects that threaten stability in Ethiopia’s western Gambella region. Ethiopia joined with others in the African Union and the United Nations to broker a series of agreements that were often quickly broken.
According to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR, Ethiopia hosts close to half a million South Sudanese refugees. Most are hosted in a series of camps in Gambella, where an influx of ethnic Nuer refugees from South Sudan has altered local population balances in ways that the ethnic Agnuak perceive as threatening.
In April 2016, a group of ethnic Murle from South Sudan raided villages in Gambella, killing an estimated 200 people. Ethiopian troops pursued the raiders back into South Sudan in an attempt to free 100 kidnapped children. Ethiopia’s leadership in the peace process in South Sudan has important implications for Ethiopia’s domestic security, as well as providing the potential to build stability along its western frontier of the country.
Given the above issues and challenges that the two countries face, what is to be done to ensure mutual support, peace and development between the two countries? I suggest the following.
In the first place, strict joint monitoring of the border areas between the two countries should be put in place not only to curb contraband, illicit trading in arms but also to ensure technology aided safety and security between the two countries.
Starting people to people relations between the two countries in the form of public diplomacy will help South Sudan to assume its proper socio-cultural position in the region.
Besides, Ethiopia can cooperate in multi-faceted and mutually beneficial capacity building programs for South Sudan. Cooperation in establishing national police force for South Sudan is already gaining momentum but needs to be further strengthened in the spheres of joint defense cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries.
There is a huge potential for cooperation between the two countries in the commerce and industrial development in the context of COMESA, AfCFTA and other regional arrangements. Joint operational commissions can be established to follow up on economic cooperation between the two countries.
Of particular importance is the cooperation in infrastructure, health, and sector oriented vocational trainings development and promotion of financial institutions for South Sudan. Ethiopia has the capacity and potential to train pilots for South Sudan’s and civil aviation professionals.
Although South Sudan has a huge potential for fossil fuel development, the country needs to effectively join the Nile Basin Initiative and the regional efforts in promoting climate resilient green economy strategy that would help to diversify the country’s energy sources.
Ethiopia and South Sudan have a lot to accomplish in fostering mutually beneficial socio-economic and diplomatic relations as well as deeper cooperation in the areas of peace and security. Ethiopia can support the visibility, rootedness and positioning of South Sudan in regional and global affairs. More can be done for mutual benefit of the two countries.
The Ethiopian Herald February 25/2021
