UN: South Sudan Vice President Embezzled $1.7 Billion

UN investigators have accused South Sudanese authorities of looting the country’s wealth, including the payment of $1.7 billion to companies linked to Vice President Benjamin Bol Mel for road construction projects that were never completed.

In its report, the UN Human Rights Commission on South Sudan said the payments, made between 2021 and 2024, were just one example of the “grand corruption” plaguing the impoverished country.

The Commission, established by the UN Human Rights Council in 2016, stated that the country has fallen under the grip of an exploitative elite that entrenched systematic looting of national resources for personal gain, according to Reuters.

The report also noted that budget allocations for the President’s special medical unit exceeded the entire nationwide health spending.

In response, Justice Minister Joseph Geng said, in an official written reply to the Commission, that the report relied on figures that did not match the government’s own data.

However, the Commission stressed that corruption remains the best explanation for South Sudan’s persistent economic and humanitarian crises.

It continued that the findings were based on 173 meetings and interviews conducted between late 2022 and 2024, in addition to government documents and financial records.

The Commission emphasized that its focus on corruption was justified, as illicit enrichment has undermined the government’s ability to meet its human rights obligations and directly fueled armed violence.