Business
South Sudan aggressively pitching for investors in multiple sectors
Building From Scratch
An influx of adventurous entrepreneurs has helped fuel a small business boom in South Sudan, which remains desperately poor and in need of almost everything from bridges and banks to office furniture and private security.
Roughly the size of France, South Sudan has just about 100 km (60 miles) of paved roads. Hospitals and schools are still scarce. Oil accounts for some 98 percent of government revenues.
Stephen Hayes, the head of the Washington-based Corporate Council on Africa, a business association, said companies were interested in South Sudan but realistic about the prospects for operating in one of the least developed regions in the world.
“The positive thing is the amount of attention that it is getting from other countries. There is a lot going into it to make it work,” Hayes said, adding that winning contracts for development projects would be the first order of business for most companies.
Among those due to participate in the Washington conference are Marathon Oil, Halliburton Co and Google, organizers said.
The three guarantors of Sudan’s 2005 peace deal: the United States; Britain and Norway, have each agreed to pilot assistance in specific sectors of the economy.
Britain will help South Sudan improve public management and anti-corruption efforts; oil-rich Norway will help develop governance of the oil sector; and the United States will lead on encouraging private sector investment and boosting agriculture – seen as one of the country’s most promising sectors.
