President Salva Kiir and shake SPLM-IO leader Riek Machar hold hands during their first meeting in Addis Ababa.

Parties to the peace negotiations in the Sudanese capital Khartoum are expected to sign a peace deal on Friday.

Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth said the Sudanese government is finalizing the draft document.

He stated that the signing ceremony is expected to be attended by the IGAD heads of state and governments:

“The government of Sudan is still working on the document. It is not yet ready and so we are expected to continue for the next few days to that time when we are given the document.”

Peter Mayen, the chairperson of Umbrella Coalition, urged the citizens not to lose hope.

“The message is that we will achieve peace at the end of the day because there is no any other way apart from peace,” he said.

For his part, Bishop Enock Tombe of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan, said the parties will sign the agreement, “whether they like it or not”.