EU says no funding available for South Sudan’s December elections

The European Union has said it currently has no funding available to support South Sudan’s planned December elections.

EU Ambassador to South Sudan Pelle Enarsson said the government has yet to present a detailed budget outlining the resources required to conduct the elections.

“We do not have any funding available for supporting the elections. I have not seen a clear appeal. We have not seen a clear budget. We have not seen what is required,” Enarsson said during a media briefing in Juba.

He said the government should take the lead in financing the electoral process before seeking additional assistance from international partners.

“The government itself will have to put resources for this very important first election,” Enarsson said, adding that the government “needs to be in the driver’s seat of making the right budgets, putting resources on the table itself and then identify the gaps.”

Enarsson said the EU would await the findings of an AU election monitoring mission before considering any possible support.

“We would probably wait and see what this AU monitoring mission comes up with,” he said.

He added that any future request for assistance could be presented to a broader group of international partners, potentially with the involvement of the African Union.

“Maybe together with the African Union present this to a wider set of the international community in order for us to assess even the possibility,” he said.

According to the ambassador, any future EU support would also depend on factors including the inclusivity and credibility of the electoral process.

Enarsson was responding to questions from Eye Radio during the media briefing in Juba.

The comments come a day after South Sudan’s Parliament passed amendments to the Elections Act on Monday, with President Salva Kiir signing the legislation into law on the same day.

The amended law provides the legal framework for elections scheduled for December 22, 2026.