The soon-to-be-born Republic of Southern Sudan should be extremely cautious of donor country and NGO interests and their impact on its public policy. The young country should take cognizance of the fact many African countries are yet to build a people participation governance system 50 years after  independence because their founding leaders compromised their ideals and migrated to serve personal interests.

The castigation of  NGOs in Kenya  by Dr Naomi Shabaan (Kenya Gender, Children and Social Development Minister) for undermining Government efforts to remove street children from Kenya’s streets ought to point a red flag to Southern Sudan whose development bid requires concerted efforts. “Most NGOs want street families to remain in our towns so that they [NGOs] can continue to attract donor funding,” the Minister observes.

Southern Sudan, the ‘new kid’ on the globe will certainly require concerted efforts  from local and international partners to be able to stand on its own feet. Already, the region is heavily infested with foreign NGOs addressing all manner of issues, including those that can be tackled by the people of southern Sudan. However, as the Kenyan case demonstrates, southern Sudan should not put all its hope in NGOs and donor countries in its quest to be vibrant, as most of them serve their own agenda. Already, there is an outcry that most of them are denying southern Sudanese jobs in the pretext that the job seekers are not qualified. In essence, they are out to justify their stay.

Whereas the role of NGOs in delivering essential services should not be underestimated, Sudan’s intellectuals, businesspeople and policy-makers must soberly seek ways to stem the rising tide of developmental and political onslaughts that will most likely leave their nation static and desperate. They should also mark government top officials who accept ‘bribe-for-silence’ from international institutions to allow them loot Southern Sudan’s wealth without fear of being expelled or shame-listed.