IRI Assists New Legislature

May 2, 2005

May 2-6 – After the signing of an historic peace agreement between the government of Sudan and the southern-based Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) in January 2005, the southern Sudanese are now faced with the daunting challenge of joining a new unity government in Khartoum and developing a semi-autonomous regional government for the southern half of the country. Both governments are required under the peace agreement to be operational by July 9. Through funding from USAID, IRI’s Sudan program is currently working with southern Sudanese officials on the development of a new legislature for the government of Southern Sudan.

In early May, IRI brought together 56 southern Sudanese officials, many of whom had served as legislators in previous southern governments, to share comparative examples of legislative design from other countries and to assist the Sudanese as they draft a new constitution for the south. Examples of federalism, legislative process and separation of powers were provided by a team of international experts from Nigeria, South Africa and the United States. On the final day of the seminar, the participants, led by the speaker of southern Sudan’s current legislative body, drafted a set of recommendations for the new Southern Sudan legislature to be presented for consideration to the constitutional drafting committee for the South. As new legislators are chosen in the coming months, IRI will begin an extensive orientation program to cover such topics as parliamentary procedure, bill drafting, executive oversight and budget process. This training will be provided to southern representatives to the National Assembly, the Southern Sudan Assembly, and the state assemblies of the southern states.

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