South Sudan: Bishops’ Conference to revitalise operations

The new President of the Sudan Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SCBC), Bishop Eduardo Hiiboro Kusala of the Catholic Diocese of Tombura-Yambio in South Sudan, says the conference has embarked on a process of restructuring and revitalisation.

In an interview with the Fr. Don Bosco Onyalla, the Director of the Nairobi-based Catholic News Agency for Africa, CANAA, Bishop Eduardo described the nature of SCBC as one which comprises two independent countries of Sudan and South Sudan.

“(The) structure of the conference is one. We have one Episcopal Conference of Sudan and South Sudan. We are all one, and we felt that it was necessary to keep one Conference simply because we have been together and that in Sudan there are only two dioceses, ” Said the new President of the Conference.

According to Bishop Eduardo, the Bishops are keen to revitalise the Conference because it has been beset by challenges and is almost stagnant.

“With the division of the country into two, with the ongoing conflict, our Conference has been like almost stagnant. The first thing is to see that the (Conference) structure is viable, and can be effective and efficient….So, as I speak about structure, it means the whole thing to get the conference back on its feet surely it will need personnel. We already have the Secretary General, but we need people around him, then the resources, and space to allow this first beginning to unfold,” the Bishop said.

Part of the challenge is that though the Catholic Secretariat is in the capital, Juba, some of the resources and facilities for the Bishops’ Conference remain in Khartoum.

Another concern is logistical.

“The other thing is also the political challenges. It is not easy to move (around). Most the Ordinaries are in their dioceses. To get them over to Juba is not easy; communication is a challenge. Roads are not passable in many places. You can only (travel) by air, and these (planes) are not always there, they are not reliable,” said Bishop Eduardo.

General insecurity as a result of the war within South Sudan has also significantly hampered the Conference's activities.  

(Paul Samasumo, Vatican Radio)

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