The ongoing violent conflict in South Sudan is killing, displacing and exposing South Sudanese to unbearable conditions of life, especially youth and women. The war excludes sections of society from full participation in the political, economic and cultural system that shapeshapes their lives. Lack of access to and engagement in their government, make policies fail to address their needs, favoring instead those who have “power” and “resources” in times of conflict times. The government is increasingly growing poor and in debt. However, individuals and privileged private companies are getting richer every day. The middle class is reduced, leaving the country polarized between the extremely rich and the extremely poor. This situation limits the ability of government to implement and redistribute policies and to withstand pressure from rich individuals and companies. The stories we hear from the media and art still most still mostly disproportionately favor and represent a select few. This drives poverty and inequality in the country. Another factor that drives the war and inequality in the country is demand for natural resources, especially minerals and the forests in South Sudan. The factors that come to play is on ownership and control of natural resources. Their current exploitation exacerbates inequality due to displacement of people and uncontrolled disposal of the waste. This has compromising effects on human rights and the dignity of people.

People have the potential to hold their leaders and institutions accountable, pushing them to be responsive and fulfil their promise to serve the common good. The Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS) if implemented offers a moment for meaningful civic engagement that is an antidote to inequality, with rich potential to empower the underrepresentedunder-represented and marginalized people and communities to raise their voices, claim space, influence decisions that affect them, and hold leaders to accountaccountable.