South Sudan's Parliamentary Committee on Finance and Planning has disclosed that the country owes more than $55 million to foreign missions and regional bodies, debts that have already triggered court-ordered evictions at embassies in Europe and the African Union. The figures emerged Wednesday as the committee presented its review of the proposed 2025-2026 national budget to the National Legislature in Juba.
Diplomatic Missions Face Eviction and Fines
Committee Chairperson Hon. Rev. Michael Ayuen Johnson told lawmakers that South Sudanese missions in the United Kingdom, France, Italy and at the African Union have been threatened with closure or forced eviction after landlords pursued unpaid rent through foreign courts. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation alone has accumulated $19.8 million in rental arrears, according to the committee's findings.
"The Committee observed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has accumulated rental arrears amounting to USD 19.8 million, and this is now being demanded by landlords through courts overseas," Johnson said. In France, the committee reported, a court has imposed a daily penalty of $2,000 on the government until the debt is cleared, a fine that continues to accrue with each day of non-payment. Some diplomatic posts, the report noted, have been reduced to operating online after losing their physical offices.
Regional Organizations Owed $36 Million
Beyond embassy rents, the committee's report shows South Sudan owes roughly $36 million in unpaid membership fees to four regional bodies. The breakdown includes about $21 million owed to the East African Community, $12 million to the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, $1.1 million to the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, and $683,000 to the Northern Corridor Implementation Agency.
Separately, the Ministry of East African Community Affairs has accumulated $825,000 in unpaid office rent over two years, an obligation the committee said was left out of the 2025 national budget entirely.
What Happens Next
These disclosures were presented as part of ongoing deliberations on the 2025-2026 fiscal budget, which the National Legislature has not yet finalized. It remains unclear how, or on what timeline, the government intends to address the arrears, and lawmakers have not yet detailed specific repayment measures. The committee's report puts the scale of the problem on record, but resolution will depend on budget decisions still under debate in Juba.