Uganda, South Sudan move to cut trade barriers along West Nile corridor

Uganda, South Sudan move to cut trade barriers along West Nile corridor

Uganda and South Sudan have agreed to progressively remove tariff and non-tariff barriers and harmonise customs and immigration procedures, in a push to speed up the movement of goods and cut transit times along one of East Africa’s busiest trade corridors.

The measures were agreed at the sixth Uganda–South Sudan Joint Border Meeting on Economic and Security Cooperation, held in Arua District from 23 to 24 July. The two sides said the reforms are intended to ease bottlenecks facing traders and the private sector along the Central and West Nile corridors, the main overland routes linking Ugandan producers to the South Sudanese market.

South Sudan is one of Uganda’s largest export destinations, absorbing significant volumes of Ugandan foodstuffs, cement, steel and other manufactured goods through border points in the West Nile region. But cross-border commerce has been dogged by customs delays, informal charges and, increasingly, insecurity along a boundary whose contested stretches have triggered deadly clashes between the two countries’ armies.

To anchor the trade reforms, the delegations committed to reaffirming and re-marking the roughly 470-kilometre shared border by 2027, reconvening the Joint Technical Committee to expedite the exercise, and reactivating cross-border management committees to protect legitimate trade. The commitments come after four people — one UPDF officer and three South Sudanese soldiers — were killed in a July 14 clash between the two armies in Yumbe District, and after earlier fighting in Kajo-Keji County displaced more than 16,000 people, disruptions that have repeatedly stalled trade at affected crossings.

The two-day meeting, held at L’Hotel Le Confidentiel in Arua, brought together government officials, customs and revenue authorities, security agencies, local leaders and private sector representatives. It was co-chaired by Brigadier General Ronnie Balya, Uganda’s Ambassador to South Sudan, and Emmanuel Adil Anthony Wani, Governor of Central Equatoria State, and followed a directive by Presidents Yoweri Museveni and Salva Kiir Mayardit issued during Museveni’s state visit to Juba in April 2025.

Deliberations also covered customs and revenue, security and stability, and migration and social services. To guide implementation, the two sides adopted a matrix to direct action by government ministries, border authorities, security institutions and private sector actors. South Sudan will host the seventh session on a date to be agreed through diplomatic channels.