Summary

• The period preceding the promulgation of the 2012 Mining Act was a difficult time for South Sudan’s mining sector. After the end of the civil war in 2005 and amid the political uncertainty of the transitional period, government institutions at various levels began issuing mining titles to private companies, whether or not they had the legal authority to do so.
• The Ministry of Petroleum and Mining granted companies licenses to conduct reconnaissance and exploration activities over exceedingly large areas of land. Some promising areas were even awarded to multiple companies. The bureaucratic failures of this period led to a considerable amount of confusion among public and private sector actors.
• To halt the unregulated distribution of mining rights and to permit time for the government to establish its regulatory framework, the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly put in place a moratorium on mining licenses in November 2010. 
• The moratorium largely served its purpose of providing the government with policy space in which to develop a regulatory framework. In December 2012, a new Mining Act was signed into force by the president of South Sudan.
• The Mining Act was a welcome step forward in many respects, but it also leaves room for political influence over decision making, particularly with regard to the granting of licenses, the distribution of benefits from mining ventures, and the applicable standards governing the expropriation of individually and community owned land.
• Government action can help to ensure that the benefits of South Sudan’s mineral wealth are allocated fairly among government institutions, private companies, and affected communities. The equitable distribution of benefits can help to reduce the potential for social unrest and conflict in future mining ventures.
• In order to satisfy its obligations under both South Sudanese domestic law and international human rights law, the government should not expropriate land for mining purposes without first securing the free, prior, and informed consent of landowning communities.
• Among other measures, the government should also enforce constitutional provisions that prohibit the president, vice president, presidential advisers, ministers, deputy ministers, governors, state advisers, state ministers, and other constitutional office holders from engaging in commercial activities.

About the Report

This report is based on research conducted in Juba, Torit, and Kapoeta during August and September 2012. The research provides an initial examination on the underdocumented issue of mining in South Sudan and seeks to provide the government of South Sudan with evidence-based recommendations that can help it to develop a regulatory framework that will provide equitable benefits to all concerned parties. This report was made possible through financial and editorial support from the United States Institute of Peace.

About the Authors

David K. Deng is the research director for the South Sudan Law Society (SSLS), a civil society organization based in Juba. Paul Mertenskoetter is a student at New York University (NYU) School of Law and has worked with the SSLS on questions relating to foreign investment in South Sudan. Luuk van de Vondervoort holds master’s degrees from the University of Amsterdam and University College London. He is currently working for the Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC) in South Sudan. The views expressed in this report are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SSLS, NYU School of Law, or the BICC.

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