A new report has ranked South Sudan as the second bottom country in terms of governance.
The latest report titled, 2018 Ibrahim Index of African Governance, is the 12th annual edition published by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation.
The report gauges countries’ delivery on Safety and Rule of Law, Participation and Human Rights, Sustainable Economic Opportunity and Human Development.
According to the index, South Sudan is 53rd after Somalia, scoring just 19 points.
Comparatively, South Sudan levels with the Central African Republic in terms of Human Development as both are ranked at 52nd.
Eritrea – whose overall performance is better than South Sudan and Somalia – has done the worst compared to the two countries in terms of respect of human rights and citizens’ participation.
Mauritania has ranked as the top best performing country on the continent followed by Seychelles and Cabo Verde with 80, 73 and 71 percentage scores, respectively.
In his remarks, the organisation founder, Mo Ibrahim, said the best performing countries are those that provide their citizens’ rights and welfare, and whose governments are accountable to their citizens.
However, he warned that with the expected population growth, Africa stands at a tipping point, and the next years will be crucial.
“Key governance areas are not progressing fast enough to keep up with rising demands, and more specifically to answer the growing expectations of Africa’s youth, who are now forming the majority of our continent, and still expected to rise by almost 20% in the next decade.”
He advised that all aspects of governance must be citizen-centred, saying that Rule of Law, Transparency and Accountability are key to progress in governance, and strongly related to improving economic opportunities.
“I hope this Index and its findings can continue to be a useful tool to help strengthen African governance.”
via EyeRadio