Lamola, who chairs the African Union Committee of Five (C5) tasked with overseeing the implementation of the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS), concluded an official visit to Juba this week aimed at assessing progress on resolutions adopted during the C5 Plus Summit held on the margins of the 39th Ordinary Session of the African Union Assembly in Addis Ababa on 15 February 2026.
His visit came at a critical moment as South Sudan continues preparations for elections scheduled for December 2026, while several key provisions of the Addis Ababa declaration remain outstanding, including the release of political detainees—particularly suspended First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny—and the restoration of an inclusive political environment.
Speaking after departing Juba, Lamola struck a cautiously optimistic tone, saying the visit had reinforced hopes that South Sudan’s political leaders would recommit to dialogue.
“As the Chairperson of the African Union Committee of Five (C5) responsible for overseeing the process of the implementation of the revitalised peace agreement, we left South Sudan with renewed hope that peace will prevail,” Lamola said in a statement via X on Friday.
He stressed that sustaining the peace process will require the participation of all parties that signed the revitalized peace agreement, including the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-In Opposition, led by Machar.
“A process of inclusive national dialogue involving all the signatories to the revitalized agreement will be undertaken, and all the processes that will move from now will remain credible, and all parties will be involved and be allowed to participate in this process,” he said.
Lamola further emphasized that South Sudan’s planned elections must not only take place but must also meet internationally accepted democratic standards.
“It is important that the elections should be inclusive, should be transparent, should be fair, and the security environment should be conducive to conduct free and fair elections,” he added.
His remarks echo the central recommendations adopted by the African Union C5 Plus Summit in Addis Ababa earlier this year, where regional leaders urged the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity (RTGoNU) to urgently consolidate gains made under the peace agreement and establish conditions necessary for peaceful, credible elections.
Among the summit’s most significant resolutions was a call on the government to consider releasing all political detainees, with particular emphasis on Dr. Machar, whose detention has remained one of the most contentious issues affecting implementation of the peace agreement. The declaration argued that confidence-building measures, including the release of detained political leaders, would help restore trust among the parties and facilitate a genuinely inclusive political process.
However, nearly five months after the Addis Ababa meeting, several of those recommendations remain unimplemented, raising concerns among regional and international partners over the pace of implementation of the revitalized peace agreement.
Machar’s continued detention and restrictions on sections of the opposition have drawn repeated calls from regional organizations, diplomats and international stakeholders who argue that meaningful elections cannot be held without the participation of all major political actors.
The African Union has consistently maintained that successful elections in South Sudan depend not only on technical preparations but also on political consensus, improved security and full implementation of the outstanding provisions of the peace agreement.
Lamola’s visit formed part of the C5’s ongoing engagement with South Sudanese authorities as the African Union seeks to preserve momentum toward the country’s first elections since independence.
