VZCZCXRO6524
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #1645 1931159
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 121159Z JUL 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3668
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 001645 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PGOV ECON ETRD SU
SUBJECT:  Minister of Commerce:  All Work and No Clout 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  Anthony Lino Makana, Government of Southern Sudan 
(GoSS) Minister of Commerce, Trade and Supply is the youngest, and 
one of the hardest working ministers in the GOSS.  A former CARE 
project manager with a master's degree in post-conflict 
reconstruction, Makana has the qualifications and drive to help 
develop the private sector in Southern Sudan.  However, he has few 
allies and little clout in the government and, as one of the few 
ministers to not serve in the SPLA, is perceived as an outsider. 
Makana spent most of the war studying in England at the behest of 
John Garang, and Garang recalled Makana to serve in this post. 
Without support and with few resources, Makana has managed to make a 
functioning ministry, although the benefits it can provide are 
limited because his colleagues have not taken the time to listen. 
End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Makana was given ministry offices that are dilapidated even 
by GOSS standards, and he has one of the smallest budgets in the 
government.  However, he managed to secure grants from the British 
development agency, DFID, and now has a full complement of computers 
and VSAT access to the internet, making his ministry one of the few 
with this capability.  Unfortunately, the DFID grant that installed 
the computers provided minimal training.  This has left Makana 
without any information management personnel to fix anything that 
goes wrong or provide tutorial help to inexperienced users. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Makana has completed the hiring of his executive staff: 
two secretaries general, seven directors, and a dozen deputy 
directors, making his ministry one of the first to have done so.  He 
has also completed his 200-day plan and a proposal to the 
Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF) that outlines an intra-ministry 
strategy to establish a fully functioning private sector.  His 
ministry's role in the plan involves the establishment of investment 
policy and a strong regulatory environment. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Few of the other cabinet members have paid much attention 
to Makana, and he is often out of the loop in decisions affecting 
business growth.  GOSS President Salva Kiir has highlighted private 
investment as a government priority, but the lead in this effort has 
been taken by the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs, the Ministry of 
Finance, and the Vice President's Office, with little effective 
planning and no clear vision on how to accomplish this task.  Not 
only do other offices fail to consult with the Ministry of Commerce, 
Trade and Supply on such issues as attracting investment, 
establishing free markets, and licensing companies, but Makana says 
they do not even listen to him when he makes suggestions or forwards 
proposals. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Makana said that he will continue to work hard and put in 
long hours in an effort to prove himself and convince his colleagues 
that the best way to attract the right kind of investment to the 
south is to offer a stable business environment and transparent 
regulatory system. 
 
HUME