Study estimates government salary arrears at up to SSP 2.1 trillion

Government salary arrears had reached an estimated 1.3 trillion to 2.1 trillion South Sudanese pounds by January 2026, adding pressure to the ongoing cash crisis, according to a new policy study.

The study, published on Wednesday, was authored by Dr. Augustino T. Mayai, Director General of the National Bureau of Statistics, and Dr. Aweng P. Majok.

It says salary arrears had accumulated to between eight and thirteen months by January 2026.

The study warns that paying salaries electronically without enough physical cash has widened the gap between money held in bank accounts and banknotes available for withdrawal.

According to the report, paying just two months of public salaries into bank accounts would require six times the cash held in all commercial bank vaults combined.

The report says the shortage has made it difficult for people to access cash, affecting workers, businesses and the wider economy.

The authors recommend increasing the supply of physical currency and auditing government liabilities to establish how much is owed and how the debts should be settled.

They also call for greater transparency in the allocation of cash to commercial banks.

The findings are contained in a policy advisory titled Cash Everywhere, Trust Nowhere: The SSP Liquidity Crisis in South Sudan.

The study was presented during a national policy workshop in Juba organized by the Bank of South Sudan and the Ebony Center to discuss the causes of the cash crisis and possible solutions.