VZCZCXRO9820
RR RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #0667/01 0741612
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 151612Z MAR 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1899
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 000667 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV ETRD PINR SU
SUBJECT:  GoSS Trade Ministry to Develop Private Sector 
 
¶1.  SUMMARY:  The main focus of the Government of 
Southern Sudan (GoSS) Ministry of Commerce, Trade and 
Supply will be to develop the private sector in the 
region.  In a March 8 meeting with CG Juba, Minister 
Anthony Lino explained that southerners have never really 
worked in the private sector, which has been dominated by 
northern Arab traders since independence.  Makana said 
his small ministry would mostly work with other 
ministries, such as finance, public utilities, transport, 
and agriculture, to create a positive business 
environment and establish public/private partnerships 
when advantageous.  Makana requested a USG technical 
advisor assist in establishing the ministry and 
developing policy.  End Summary. 
 
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No History of Business 
---------------------- 
 
¶2.  According to Makana, southerners have never really 
worked in the private sector.  He said that since 
independence, all private business was controlled by Arab 
traders from the North, leaving government as the only 
employment option for southerners.  Everyone else was 
involved in little more than subsistence farming, as they 
also lacked any development in commercial agriculture. 
Either way, he said, there are limited opportunities to 
generate wealth, and few southerners are accustomed to 
thinking in entrepreneurial terms. 
 
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Priorities for Growth 
--------------------- 
 
¶3.  The two biggest priorities for the Ministry of 
Commerce will be to attract investment in infrastructure 
development, such as electricity and housing, as well as 
investment in commercial agricultural and the eco- 
sensitive foresty sector.  The ministry would also like 
to revive the industrial complex at Nzara, which produced 
manufactured basic goods such as soap and textiles, and 
processed sugar and cotton until it was closed at the 
beginning of the civil war.  Makana pointed out that 
virtually all his projects are done in cooperation with 
other ministries, and that the Ministry of Finance is 
taking the lead in many commercial development 
activities, such as private sector regulation and 
establishing tariffs, taxes, and government loans. He 
would like to attract foreign business to Southern Sudan, 
but he said that they would most likely be required to 
have a local partner.  The exact percentage of local 
ownership has yet to be decided.  Like many GoSS 
ministries, the primary role of the commerce ministry 
will be to facilitate and set policy, while actual 
implementation will fall on the states.  The ministry 
plans on having a director general in each state. 
 
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Building a Ministry 
------------------- 
 
¶4.  Makana is currently focused on establishing his 
ministry.  He said that most of his employees are former 
SPLA soldiers with little to no business experience.  He 
said that VEGA, a USAID implementing partner, has already 
assisted with some training and that the British 
development Agency, DFID, has given USD 100,000 for 
office equipment.  More, however, is needed.  Makana 
asked if the USG could provide a technical advisor, 
perhaps with a background that includes commercial law, 
to assist with organizing the ministry and establishing 
policies. 
 
¶5.  The Supply part of the ministry's title is an 
anachronism according to Makana.  It is a legacy of the 
original 1972 southern government, when his predecessor 
agency was responsible for supplying goods to local 
cooperative stores in a system very similar to colonial 
plantation company stores.  Makana would like to separate 
the ministry from that history, but he said the Council 
of Ministers refused to drop "Supply" because it does not 
fully understand the context. 
 
¶6.  Bio Note:  Makana is originally from Yambio, although 
his mother is from Juba.  He holds a degree in business 
administration and a master's degree in post-war 
reconstruction from the University of York.  He said he 
was working on a second master's in economic development 
when John Garang asked that he return to the south to 
assist the SPLM.  He has been the project manager for a 
USAID-funded CARE project.  Unlike most GoSS government 
officials, Makana never served in the SPLA. 
 
 
KHARTOUM 00000667  002 OF 002 
 
 
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