The now defunct Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly ratified a transitional constitution shortly before independence on 9 July 2011. The constitution was signed by the President of South Sudan on Independence Day and thereby came into force. It is now the supreme law of the land, superseding the Interim Constitution of 2005.
The constitution establishes a mixed presidential system of government headed by a president who is head of state, head of government, and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. It also establishes the National Legislature comprising two houses: a directly elected assembly, the National Legislative Assembly, and a second chamber of representatives of the states, the Council of States.
John Garang, the founder of the SPLA/M, was the first president of the autonomous government until his death on 30 July 2005. Salva Kiir Mayardit, his deputy, was sworn in as First Vice President of Sudan and President of the Government of Southern Sudan on 11 August 2005. Riek Machar replaced him as Vice-President of the Government. Legislative power is vested in the government and the bicameral National Legislature. The constitution also provides for an independent judiciary, the highest organ being the Supreme Court.
National capital project
The capital of South Sudan is located at Juba, which is also the state capital of Central Equatoria and the county seat of the eponymous Juba County, as well as being the country’s largest city. However, due to Juba’s poor infrastructure and massive urban growth, as well as its lack of centrality within South Sudan, the South Sudanese Government adopted a resolution in February 2011 to study the creation of a new planned city to serve as the seat of government. It is planned that the capital city will be changed to the more centrally located Ramciel in the future. This proposal is functionally similar to construction projects in Abuja, Nigeria; Brasília, Brazil; and Canberra, Australia; among other modern-era planned national capitals. It is unclear how the government will fund the project.
In September 2011, a spokesman for the government said the country’s political leaders had accepted a proposal to build a new capital at Ramciel, a place in Lakes state near the borders with Central Equatoria and Jonglei. Ramciel is considered to be the geographical center of the country, and the late pro-independence leader John Garang allegedly had plans to relocate the capital there before his death in 2005. The proposal was supported by the Lakes state government and at least one Ramciel tribal chief. The design, planning, and construction of the city will likely take as many as five years, government ministers said, and the move of national institutions to the new capital will be implemented in stages.
States
2011–15
The former ten states of South Sudan grouped in the three historical provinces of the Sudan
Bahr el Ghazal
Equatoria
Greater Upper Nile
Prior to 2015, South Sudan was divided into 10 states, which also correspond to three historical regions: Bahr el Ghazal, Equatoria, and Greater Upper Nile:
Bahr el Ghazal
Northern Bahr el Ghazal
Western Bahr el Ghazal
Lakes
Warrap
Equatoria
Western Equatoria
Central Equatoria (containing the national capital city of Juba)
Eastern Equatoria
Greater Upper Nile
Jonglei
Unity
Upper Nile
2017–present
States of South Sudan
The 28 states of South Sudan as established in 2015
In October 2015, South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir issued a decree establishing 28 states in place of the 10 constitutionally established states. The decree established the new states largely along ethnic lines. A number of opposition parties and civil society challenged the constitutionality of this decree and Kiir later resolved to take it to parliament for approval as a constitutional amendment. In November the South Sudanese parliament empowered President Kiir to create new states.
Bar el Ghazal
Aweil
Aweil East
Eastern Lakes
Gogrial
Gok
Lol
Tonj
Twic
Wau
Western Lakes
Equatoria
Amadi
Gbudwe
Imatong
Jubek (containing the national capital city of Juba)
Maridi
Kapoeta
Tambura
Terekeka
Yei River
Greater Upper Nile
Akobo
Boma
Central Upper Nile
Eastern Bieh
Eastern Nile
Jonglei
Latjoor
Maiwut
Northern Liech
Ruweng
Southern Liech
Western Bieh
Western Nile
On 14 January 2017 another 4 states have been created, Central Upper Nile, Northern Upper Nile, Tumbura and Maiwut leading to an overall number of 32.
The Abyei Area, a small region of Sudan bordering on the South Sudanese states of Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Warrap, and Unity, currently has a special administrative status in Sudan and is governed by an Abyei Area Administration. It was due to hold a referendum in 2011 on whether to join South Sudan or remain part of the Republic of Sudan, but in May the Sudanese military seized Abyei, and it is not clear if the referendum will be held.
