Nadia Arop Dudi Mayom (born 1 January 1971) is a

South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the ...

ese politician who has served in the South Sudan National Legislative Assembly since 2011, representing

Koch County Koch County is an administrative division of Unity State, South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by ...

as a member of the

Sudan People's Liberation Movement The Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM; ar, الحركة الشعبية لتحرير السودان, ''Al-Ḥarakat ash-Shaʿbiyyat liTaḥrīr as-Sūdān'') is a political party in South Sudan. It was initially founded as the political w ...

. Dudi is one of two Padang people serving in ministerial positions, alongside Simon Mijok Mijak.

Biography

Dudi was born on 1 January 1979 in the town of Bentiu,

Western Upper Nile Unity State, also known as Western Upper Nile, is a state in South Sudan. Unity state is in the Greater Upper Nile region. Unity is inhabited predominantly by two ethnic groups: the Nuer majority, and the Dinka minority. In 2015, a presidentia ...

, Sudan. She graduated from the

University of Bahr El-Ghazal University of Bahr El-Ghazal (UBG) is a university in South Sudan located in Wau, the capital of Western Bahr El Ghazal State. It was established in 1991. Location The University is located in the city of Wau, in ''Wau County'', Wau State in ...

in 2009 with a degree in

veterinary science Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...

, and is currently attending the

University of Juba The University of Juba ( ar, جامعة جوبا) is an English-language public university located in Juba, South Sudan. It was founded in 1975 under by the former Vice president of and President of Southern Sudan, Abel Alier Kwai. The univers ...

, pursuing a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

degree. In 2005, Dudi was elected to the

National Assembly of Sudan The National Assembly ( ar, المجلس الوطني السوداني, ''Al-Maǧlis al-Waṭaniy'') is the lower house of the National Legislature of Sudan. The Legislature was unicameral until 2005. The upper house is the Council of States ( ...

, serving until 2010. The same year, she was elected to the semi-autonomous

Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly The Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly was established in 2005 by the Interim constitution of the Southern Sudan 2005. See also: Pending elections in 2010, all 170 members were appointed according to the following formula as per the Comprehensi ...

, serving until 2011. Dudi represented

as a member of the SPLM in both assemblies. From 2005 until 2007, Dudi was the chair of the

Unity State Unity State, also known as Western Upper Nile, is a state in South Sudan. Unity state is in the Greater Upper Nile region. Unity is inhabited predominantly by two ethnic groups: the Nuer majority, and the Dinka minority. In 2015, a president ...

SPLM. Dudi has served in the South Sudan National Legislative Assembly since 2011, following the

2010 South Sudanese general election Regional elections were held in South Sudan between 11 and 15 April 2010 as part of the Sudanese general election. The result was a victory for Salva Kiir of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, who received almost 93% of the vote.

and the 2011 South Sudanese independence referendum. In July 2011,

Salva Kiir Mayardit Salva Kiir Mayardit (born 13 September 1951), also known as Salva Kiir, is a South Sudanese politician who has been the President of South Sudan since its independence on 9 July 2011. Prior to independence, he was the President of the Governmen ...

, the

president of South Sudan This article lists the heads of state of South Sudan since the establishment of the Southern Sudan Autonomous Region within Sudan in 1972. The president of the Republic of South Sudan is the head of state and head of government of South Suda ...

, appointed Dudi to be deputy minister of Agriculture and Forestry,

Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

, Animal Resources, and Cooperatives and Rural Development; she would hold these positions until June 2013. From August 2013 until March 2020, she was minister of Culture, Youth and Sports. During this period, she also served as acting minister of Gender, Child and Social Welfare in 2018. Since March 2020, she has been minister of Culture, Museums and National Heritage. During her tenure as culture minister, South Sudan ratified a series of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

treaties, and she helped lead an outreach program displaying archived documents from the

National Archives of South Sudan The National Archive of South Sudan is located in Juba, South Sudan. The collection consists of tens of thousands of Sudanese and Southern Sudanese government documents running from the early 1900s, through the independence of Sudan in 1956 an ...

. In 2016, Dudi was one of 60 government officials allegedly implicated in a scandal regarding the Bank of South Sudan, in which £443 million SSP of funds meant for the Crisis Management Committee was used to pay various politicians and companies. Dudi is a member of the SPLM Politburo and is a founding member of the South Sudan Veterinary Council. She is married to Ambassador William Daud Riek Totor. They have two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dudi, Nadia Arop 1971 births 21st-century South Sudanese women politicians Members of the National Assembly (Sudan) 21st-century Sudanese women politicians Sudan People's Liberation Movement politicians People from Unity (state) Women government ministers of South Sudan 21st-century South Sudanese politicians 21st-century Sudanese politicians Government ministers of South Sudan Members of the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly University of Juba alumni Living people