SOUTH SUDAN. The War Economy

South Sudan has what many business
people describe as a "war economy",
as they battle to keep their
companies afloat as a result of the
brutal conflict which broke out
between government and rebel forces
in December 2013.
With President Salva Kiir finally
signing a peace deal on Wednesday,
the hope is that a step has been taken
towards ending the conflict - though
many question whether the agreement
will be implemented as seven
previous ceasefire deals have
collapsed.
But the conflict - which has killed tens
of thousands of people and left more
than two million homeless - has not
dampened the resilience of young
people such as Rachael Aleko Aguer.
Based in the capital, Juba, she
launched a lifestyle magazine, Real
Woman, in February 2015, well over a
year into the conflict.
She told the BBC that she had huge
hopes for her country - which became
independent in 2011 after splitting
from Sudan - and thinks her
publication can contribute towards its
development.
Soaring prices
But times are tough, and she could not
afford to print the July issue.
"Business is not as good as it used to
be," Ms Aguer told the BBC.
"There are increases in prices and in
my case I do the printing of the
magazine outside of my country
because there are few printers here
and they are expensive. I have
skipped one publication because there
were no dollars."
The scarcity of hard currency,
particularly the US dollar, is a big
problem, along with the sharp fall in
the value of the South Sudanese
pound. The official rate is 2.96 pounds
for a dollar; on the black market it
hovers around 14.
As a result, life is increasingly
expensive because South Sudan relies
heavily on imports.
Ms Aguer said both the fare for the
motorbike taxi she uses to get to work
and the cost of her lunch have doubled
recently.
"I don't know how it'll be like by next
week."
Before the war, South Sudan earned
most of its money from selling oil. It
accounted for 98% of government
revenues. But since then production
has halved because some oil fields
have been taken over by the rebel
forces or damaged.
And with global oil prices having
fallen, the government is not getting
much for the 160,000 barrels still
being produced.
To make matters worse, the
government also has to pay Sudan for
the oil transported through its
pipelines, as part of the deal reached
during independence talks.
South Sudan economist Luol Deng
says: "I do not want to be scaring
people but the government is getting
less than it should be getting.
"Out of every barrel passing through
Sudan, Sudan gets $24.1 per barrel.
So if the price is 30, the government of
South Sudan will be getting 5.9."
Officials hope to revise this
arrangement in negotiations due to
start in September.