Central Equatoria is a state in

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 th ...

. With an area of , it is the smallest of the original

South Sudanese South Sudan is home to around 60 indigenous ethnic groups and 80 linguistic partitions among a population of around million. Historically, most ethnic groups were lacking in formal Western political institutions, with land held by the communit ...

states. Its previous name was Bahr al-Jabal (also Bahr-el-Jebel), named after a tributary of the White Nile that flows through the state. It was renamed Central Equatoria in the first Interim Legislative Assembly on 1 April 2005 under the government of Southern Sudan. Central Equatoria seceded from

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

as part of the Republic of South Sudan on 9 July 2011. The state's capital, Juba, is also the national capital of

. On October 2, 2015, the state was split into three states: Jubek,

Terekeka Terekeka is a community in Central Equatoria, South Sudan. It is the headquarters of Terekeka County.

, and Yei River. The state of Central Equatoria was re-established by a peace agreement signed on 22 February 2020.

Administrative divisions

Central Equatoria, like other states in South Sudan, is subdivided into counties, which are further divided into Payams, then Bomas. Each county is led by a County Commissioner, appointed by the State

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

in consultation with the President. They are: *

Juba County Juba County is an administrative area in Central Equatoria state, South Sudan. It was the largest county in Central Equatoria and one of the largest in the entire region of Equatoria. Its county seat was Juba, the state capital of Central Equat ...

* Lainya County * Morobo County * Terekeka County * Yei River County * Kajo Keji County Major cities and towns of Central Equatoria include Juba, Kajo Keji, Liria, Mongalla, Wonduruba, Rokon, Tali,

Terekeka Terekeka is a community in Central Equatoria, South Sudan. It is the headquarters of Terekeka County.

, Yei, Ji-Menze, Tombek, Tindilo, Kaya, Muni, Morobo,and Rijong. The major border crossing to the neighboring

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

is at Dimo, a village in the state.

Demographics

Major tribes of Central Equatoria have included the Mandari, Pojulu, Kakwa,

Keliko Keliko or Kaliko is an ethnic group from South Sudan, bordering Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Uganda. Most members of this ethnic group are Christians.{{cn, date=December 2022 They speak the Keliko language, which is a Nilo-Saharan langua ...

, Kuku, Lugbara, Avukaya,

Baka Baka, baká or BAKA may refer to: Ethnicities and languages * Baka people (Cameroon and Gabon), an African ethnic group * Baka people (Congo and South Sudan), an African ethnic group * Baka language, a dialect cluster of Cameroon and Gabon * Baka ...

, Nyangwara,

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, and Lulubo. Minor tribes have included the Nyepo in Northern Kajo Keji County and the Lokoya along the

Nimule Nimule is a city in the southern part of South Sudan in Magwi County, Eastern Equatoria. It lies approximately , by road, southeast of Juba, the capital of South Sudan and largest city in the country. The town also lies approximately , by road, n ...

Road. Erasto Gonda, Senior Folklore Officer for Central Equatoria's information ministry, further detailed the State's demographics:

Culture and languages

Due to the

South Sudanese Civil War The South Sudanese Civil War was a multi-sided civil war in South Sudan between forces of the government and opposition forces. In December 2013, President Kiir accused his former deputy Riek Machar and ten others of attempting a coup d'éta ...

, the state's culture was heavily influenced by the countries neighboring South Sudan. Many South Sudanese fled to

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

and

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The ...

, where they interacted with the nationals and learned their languages and culture. Most of those who remained in the country or went north to

and

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...

assimilated into Arab culture. It is also worth noting that most South Sudanese diaspore kept the core of their culture even while in exile. Traditional culture is highly held and great attention is given to knowing one's origin and dialect. Although the common languages spoken are

Juba Arabic Juba Arabic (, ; ar, عربية جوبا, ‘Arabīyat Jūbā), also known since 2011 as South Sudanese Arabic, is a lingua franca spoken mainly in Equatoria Province in South Sudan, and derives its name from the South Sudanese capital, Juba ...

and English, Swahili began to be introduced to the population to improve the country's relations with its

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historica ...

n neighbors. Many people from Central Equatoria use English, Kiswahili, Juba Arabic, their dialect, or a mixture of the languages mentioned. Map Sudan BaD Juba

Government

Directly before Central Equatoria split up into three separate states in 2015, the government was as shown: *Governor – Emmanuel Adil Anthony *Deputy Governor – Sarah Nene Redento

Advisors

# Angelo Daya Loku, peace and security (SSOA) # David Wani , Economic affairs (IO) # Jacob Gore Samuel, Legal Affairs (IG) # JeniferYobu, Human Rights (IG) # Mariam A. Zachariah, Fever and social welfare (IG)

Ministers

# Hon. Wayi Godwin Edward, Minister of Cabinet Affairs (IO) # Hon. Moro Isaac Geneios, Minister of Local Government and Law Enforcement (SSOA) # Hon. Gerald Francis Nyukuye, Minister of Peace Building (IG) # Hon. Taban Emmanuel Baya, Minister of parliamentary and Legal Affairs (IO) # Hon. Andruga Mabe Severio, Minister of Information and Communication (OPP) # Hon. Rita Dominic Lado, Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports (IG) # Hon. Diana Susu Hassan, Minister of Finance, Planning, and Investment ( IG) # Hon. Wani Tom Sebit, Minister of Trade and Industry (IG) # Hon. Lily Kufuki Paul, Ministry of Agriculture, Environment, and Forestry (SSOA) # Hon. Alex Latio Elia, Minister of Animal Resources, Fisheries and Tourism (IG) # Hon Peter Lujo Yospeta, Minister of Cooperative and Rural Development (IO) # Hon. Flora Gabriel Modi,Minister of Housing, Land and Public Utilities (IG) # Hon. Mawa A. Moses, Minister of Roads and Bridges (IG) # Hon. Modi John Molla, Minister of Labor, public services and Human Resource (IG) # Hon. Nejua Marsha, Minister of Heath (IG) # Hon. Cirisio Zachariah, Minister of General Education and Instruction (IO) # Hon. Bullen Soro Amos, Minister of Gender, Child and Social Welfare (IG)

Independent Commissions

# George Wani Elia, Anti- corruption (IO) deputized by Kenyi Abiaso # Asio Moses John, employees justice chamber (IO) deputized by Huda Michael Laila # Marino Michael Sebit, HIV/AIDS (SSOA) # Felix Lado Johnson, PRC (IG) deputized by Amal Suleiman # Isaac Wuri Eluni, Human Rights (IG) deputized by Emmanuel kose Wani (IO) # Henry Kala Sabuni, Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation (IG) deputized by Amule Barnabas Lemi

County commissioners

# Hon. Charles Joseph Wani, Juba county ( SSOS) # Hon. Aggrey Cyrus, Yei River County (IG) # Hon. Joseph Mawa, Morobo County(IG) # Hon. James Lino Malou Anok, Terekeka county(IO) # Hon. Emmauel Khamis Richard, Lainya County (IG) # Hon. Kenyi Erasto Michael, Kajo-Keji (IO)

References

South Sudan Internet radio
* Interview with Erasto Gonda 'Tribes Of Central Equatoria

* 'GLOBAL: Protect rights of minorities to avoid conflict, NGO urges.

* 'Violence, Sacrifice, and Chiefship in Central Equatoria Southern Sudan.

External links

Video of Equatorians Abroad

Equatorians Abroad

UNHCR Sudan Operations: Sudan/Chad situation update 42, 8 Dec 2005
describing name change
State Government Profile
{{South Sudan political divisions Central Equatoria, States of South Sudan