IOM and the Government of Japan yesterday (20 August) signed an
agreement to launch a new initiative to work with the Government of
South Sudan to develop its capacity to police and manage its
borders through the building of 16 border posts, the construction
of an immigration training academy in Juba, and the development of
a national training curriculum on border management.

The two-year, US$5.4 million programme, which is funded by
Japan, will help South Sudan to manage border areas more
effectively and improve national and regional security.

IOM has been working with South Sudanese authorities to improve
migration management since the country’s independence in July
2011. The country suffers from human trafficking and smuggling
problems that are endemic across the region. 

IOM has already installed a passport registration and data
collection system called ‘Personal Identification and
Registration System’ (PIRS) at three land border posts and at
Juba International Airport. It has also trained over 170
immigration and police personnel. A further 250 will be trained
over the next year.

At the airport, immigration personnel now also use improved
systems to detect cases of fraudulent passports and forged
visas.  A case of smuggling of migrants was also detected in
July 2012 when six undocumented Somali migrants were discovered at
the country’s border crossing point with Uganda, hiding in
the back of a truck that was bound for Juba. 

Anecdotal evidence suggests that many irregular migrants use
South Sudan as a migration route to North Africa, Southern Europe
and other destinations.

South Sudan inherited one of the weakest border and migration
management regimes in Africa after separating from Sudan.  The
new country’s borders extend over 4,800 km, with only 19
operational border posts located at entry points with the
neighbouring countries of Ethiopia (7), Uganda (5), the DRC (4),
the Central African Republic (2) and Kenya (1.) 

The new IOM project will connect all 19 border posts to allow
for automated exchange of data and information about travellers,
according to IOM South Sudan Chief of Mission Vincent Houver.

“There is an urgent need to expand the presence of the
South Sudanese authorities and increase their skills and
professionalism at key points along the country’s
borders.  The equipment and training provided by this project
will be critical in helping them to fulfil their law enforcement
function, while facilitating the safe, dignified movement of people
and goods across their borders,” he notes.

For more information please contact

Samantha Donkin

IOM Juba

Email: "mailto:sdonkin@iom.int">sdonkin@iom.int

Tel. +211(0)922406728