Is South Sudan ready for elections this year?

Africa Daily

South Sudanese citizens will finally get to vote in an election at the end of this year.

This will be the first time a democratic process will have been carried out since Independence in 2011. But the basic preparations for such an event do not seem to have got off the ground yet.

So will the politicians of a country that has suffered years of civil war, and is still affected by inter-communal violence, have the ability to pull together and get the process started? And will the difficulties of weak state institutions, a lack of census data and logistical problems be overcome? These are some of the questions to explore as South Sudan looks forward to the 22nd of December, the date set for its first election.

Guests: BBC reporter Nichol Mandil in Juba, and Professor Abednego Akok Kacuol, the chair of the National Elections Commission.