The world’s youngest nation remains at a critical juncture: vast natural-resource potential, peace-deal hope, but also recurrence of ethnic violence, humanitarian crisis and fragile institutions.
Governance & Politics
President Salva Kiir Mayardit (SPLM) and long-time rival Riek Machar (SPLM-IO) remain central figures in the country’s politics. The 2018 “Revitalised” peace deal formally ended one phase of the civil war but in 2025 the risk of relapse is acute: a UN inquiry reported extensive corruption and state failure, while security incidents (e.g., militia attacks) continue.
In September 2025 Machar faced criminal charges, raising fears the unity government framework may collapse.
Economy & Outlook
According to the World Bank, South Sudan has abundant natural-resource potential (oil, forestry, hydropower) that could underpin inclusive development — but the immediate outlook remains fragile. The Country Focus Report for 2025 (AfDB) lists major barriers: poor human capital, insecurity, weak infrastructure. Real-GDP growth varies unpredictably due to oil price swings and production disruptions; many forecasts assume modest positive growth if peace holds, but downside risks are deep.
Tourism, Infrastructure & Services
Tourism is extremely limited due to security, infrastructure and service-delivery weaknesses. There is nascent potential in wildlife and wilderness conservation in states such as Boma or Bandingilo, but visitor flows are minimal and very high-risk.
Business Climate & Ease of Doing Business
Investing in South Sudan remains among the highest-risk ventures in Africa: security vulnerabilities, regulatory uncertainty, corruption and infrastructure deficits dominate. The humanitarian crisis and food-security events further complicate business planning.
Human Rights, Security & Governance
The human-rights situation remains dire: extrajudicial killings, conflict-related sexual violence, child recruitment, displacement and denial of humanitarian access. Food insecurity and humanitarian risk loom large: the UN has flagged multi-million hunger risk and displacement.
Security: Violent conflict persists in multiple states, militias operate outside central control, and the risk of state-fragmentation remains.
The Big Picture
South Sudan’s potential is huge — yet the practical reality remains that the nation is operating under fragile peace, weak institutions and recurring violence. For some philanthropic, humanitarian and ultra-long-term-investment missions it may hold interest, but for most commercial tourists or standard investors the risk-return profile remains extremely demanding.
Republic of South Sudan: The youngest state
