(KAMPALA, UGANDA) – Uganda and South Sudan plan to engage the African Development Bank on financing the reconstruction of the Juba-Nimule road, as the two countries seek to ease trade bottlenecks and strengthen cross-border economic ties.
The proposal was raised during a meeting between Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and South Sudanese government officials at State House Entebbe on Wednesday, where he called for cooperation in three areas: road reconstruction, development of a cross-border power line and joint security operations along the border.
“We should work on three areas: working with the African Development Bank on constructing the Juba-Nimule road for business between the two countries, building the power line, and then also our two armies cooperating on securing the borders,” President Museveni said.
The meeting came as the two countries advance a $260 million, 299km South Sudan-Uganda power interconnector, co-financed by the AfDB’s concessional lending arm, the African Development Fund, and the European Union.
Uganda and South Sudan signed a memorandum of understanding in 2015 on the creation of a 400kV transmission line between Olwiyo, northern Uganda and Juba in order to address electricity deficits and cost in South Sudan.
The 192km Juba-Nimule road is a vital trade artery linking South Sudan to Uganda and the wider Northern Corridor. Built in 2012 at a cost of $225 million through a United States Agency for International Development grant, the road cut travel time between Juba and Nimule from about eight hours to less than three.
But the road has deteriorated under heavy truck traffic and weak enforcement of axle load limits. In August, South Sudanese officials presenting a report by the Comprehensive Oversight Subcommittee on the Nimule mission cited overloaded trucks exceeding the 45 tonne limit, unregulated exemptions and informal negotiations as key factors behind the damage.
The Ugandan leader also proposed a one stop border post to simplify procedures, reduce delays and ease the movement of goods and people between the two countries.
South Sudan’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Labanya Margaret Mathya, who led the delegation, said the visit was aimed at finding practical solutions to barriers affecting cross-border commerce.
“We came to see better ways to make trade more seamless, acceptable and tasteful to both countries,” she said, adding that smoother transactions would make trade more efficient and mutually beneficial.
Uganda’s exports to South Sudan are estimated to have risen from $490 million in 2024 to about $700 million currently, underlining the importance of reliable transport links and efficient border procedures.
But traders continue to face non tariff barriers, delays in clearing goods, insecurity along trade routes and high financial service costs. Ugandan businesses operating between Kampala and Juba have also raised concerns about roadblocks and other impediments, particularly along the Nimule-Juba stretch.
Ugandan Trade Minister Sanjay Tanna said better coordination between the two governments was needed to address these challenges, including a long running dispute over payments to Ugandan grain suppliers.
The traders are seeking $41 million outstanding from supplies made to South Sudan between 2008 and 2010. Under a bilateral sovereign agreement signed in 2016, Juba acknowledged total debt of $56.4 million and paid an initial $15 million. The balance remained unpaid following the outbreak of conflict in South Sudan.
Verification of the claims has been slow and remains contested. Tanna attributed the delays partly to frequent changes of officials overseeing trade matters in Juba.
“The Ugandan community of traders that has visited me raised the issue of compensation. Their side is slow, our side is quick,” he said.
Labanya acknowledged traders’ concerns, while assuring Ugandan businesses that her ministry remained open to resolving their grievances.
The two countries are now seeking to improve trade through stronger infrastructure, more efficient border management, better security and closer government coordination.
