JUBA — A high-level government committee tasked with implementing South Sudan’s economic reforms has ordered the immediate release of more than 4,000 commercial trucks that it said had been unlawfully detained at the Nesitu checkpoint along the Juba–Nimule highway, in a move authorities believe will ease trade and help reduce the cost of goods across the country.
The directive was issued on Thursday after the Ministerial High-Level Committee on Economic Reform concluded a four-day fact-finding mission to Nimule, the country’s main border crossing with Uganda.
The committee, chaired by Finance and Planning Minister Pieng Deng Kuol, said it discovered hundreds of customs-cleared trucks being held at the checkpoint despite having fulfilled border clearance requirements.
According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Finance and Planning, the committee found that the trucks had been “illegally detained at Nesitu checkpoint with an ill-intended motive.”
The ministry did not specify who was allegedly responsible for the detentions or explain what it meant by the “ill-intended motive.” It also did not indicate how long the trucks had been held or whether any investigations had been launched into the alleged misconduct.
Following the discovery, the committee ordered the immediate release of all affected commercial trucks to facilitate the implementation of its economic reform measures.
Officials said the decision is intended to decongest the Nesitu checkpoint, speed up cargo movement from the Ugandan border into South Sudan, ease customs clearance procedures, and contribute to lowering commodity prices in local markets.
Speaking to reporters at the Nesitu checkpoint, Water Resources and Irrigation Minister James Mawich, who serves as the committee’s rapporteur, said more than 4,000 commercial trucks had been cleared to continue their journeys.
“The committee released more than four thousand commercial trucks to boost trade in Juba and across South Sudan,” Mawich said.
He described the action as part of the economic reform programme assigned to the committee by President Salva Kiir, aimed at improving the movement of goods and removing bottlenecks affecting trade.
The committee’s intervention followed a series of inspections conducted during its return journey from Nimule to Juba. Members made several unannounced stops at security installations along the highway, where they met officers responsible for protecting the road, government facilities, passengers and commercial transport.
During the engagements, committee members emphasised the strategic importance of the Juba–Nimule highway, South Sudan’s principal trade corridor through which the majority of imported goods enter the country.
They also instructed security commanders stationed along the route to implement the committee’s 13-point resolutions agreed during a stakeholders’ meeting in Nimule, saying all government agencies must work together to facilitate legitimate trade while enforcing the law.
Mawich further warned that security institutions had been directed to support the committee in implementing the reforms and cracking down on illegal economic activities.
He said anyone found engaging in smuggling, unlawful business practices or other economic crimes would face legal action and penalties in accordance with South Sudanese law.
The government has in recent months stepped up efforts to reform revenue collection and improve the efficiency of cargo movement through the Nimule corridor, which serves as the country’s primary commercial gateway and a key source of customs revenue.
