Ariel view of Juba International Airport. Credit | Obaj Okuj/Eye Radio

The Vice President in charge of infrastructure has said the government is working on a plan to re-arrange and upgrade Juba International Airport.

Taban Deng Gai says the current set-up of the airport structure does not meet international standards.

“The master plan of Juba International Airport is tempered with,” he told the press on Friday after vising a construction site for a new airspace traffic management office.

“There are stores, there are buildings, and there are depots that are built in the wrong place. Even the VIP building is not in the proper place.”

He said the infrastructure cluster of the cabinet will present a detailed plan to the council of ministers with suggestions for the removal of some buildings to have a “clear face of our national airport.”

Taban said the Air Traffic Management project, when complete, would mean “not only that we control our air space which means it’s no only about the sovereignty of our nation, but also money.”

Since independence in 2011, South Sudan’s airspace is still being controlled by neighboring Sudan.

In 2016, South Sudan signed a three-year deal with Sudan to manage and control its airspace.

The agreement says South Sudan will take full control of its airspace after training to operate the system.

But last year, the government said it was not ready to take over the management of airspace from Sudan because of untrained staff and the investment needed to do so.