UN Peacekeeping Operations: Challenges and Prospects in South Sudan

A country which has one birth every 1.63 minute and one death every 4.62 minute, with an approximate population of 11 million plus (estimated, as last official census was by Sudan in 2008), of which 8.3 million (including 4.4 million children) need humanitarian assistance, needs more than good governance to prevent utter collapse. This article explores the drivers of conflict in South Sudan and the peacekeeping challenges that the UN Mission in South Sudan faces, especially at a time when the country is preparing for long-pending elections, post formation of a revitalized government, which is by itself a proportional mix of various warring factions. The article posits that an integrated effort from traditional friends of South Sudan like the Troika (Norway, UK, Ireland), AU, EU, and other agencies, in the domains of SSR and DDR, legal structures, funding for capacity-building, election process, etc., combined with effective peacekeeping by UNMISS and implementation of the four key pillars of the mandate is necessary for a stable future.