Juba is the capital and largest city of the Republic of South Sudan. It also
serves as the capital of Central Equatoria, one of the ten states of
South Sudan. The city is situated on the White Nile and functions as the seat and
metropolis of Juba County. History
In the 19th century, a trading post and a mission, called Gondokoro, was located
in the vicinity of Juba. It was the southernmost outpost of the Egyptian
garrison, supported by a handful of soldiers, mostly ill due to the malaria
and blackwater fever that was dominant in the region. Gondokoro was also the
base of the explorers and campaigners Samuel and Florence Baker during their
expeditions to what is now South Sudan and northern Uganda from 1863 to 1865,
and from 1871 to 1873. Juba itself was established in 1922 as a
small town by a number of Greek traders which were mostly supplying the British
Army at the time. Although their number never exceeded 2,000 inhabitants,
together with a much larger number of the native Bari tribe with whom they had
excellent relationship, the Greeks contributed in what is today visible
structures downtown Juba Market area as well as the Greek Quarters, a small
suburb which today is called Hai Jalaba. Examples of the development by the
Greeks are public buildings such as the beautiful stone buildings of Ivory Bank,
Notos Lounge, the old Sudan Airways Building, Paradise Hotel, Nile
Commercial Bank and Buffalo Commercial Bank, among others. The building of
Central Bank was also built at a later stage in the mid '40s as well as the
famous Juba Hotel in the mid '30s. From 1899 to 1956, Juba was in the
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan which was jointly administered by the United Kingdom and
Egypt. British hopes to join the southern part of Sudan with Uganda were
dashed in 1947 by an agreement in Juba, also known as the Juba Conference, to
unify northern and southern Sudan. In 1955, a mutiny of southern soldiers in
Torit town sparked the First Sudanese Civil War, which did not end until 1972.
During the Second Sudanese Civil War, Juba was a strategic location that was
the focus of much fighting. In 2005, Juba became the interim seat
and the capital of the Autonomous Government of Southern Sudan, although
the proposed interim capital before the signing of the Comprehensive Peace
Agreement was Rumbek. With the advent of peace, the United Nations increased its
presence in Juba, whereas many Southern Sudan operations had until that time
been managed from Kenya. Under the leadership of the United Nations Office
for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the United Nations established
a camp known as "OCHA Camp", which served as a base for many United Nations
agencies and non-governmental organizations.
Juba became the world's newest national capital on 9 July 2011, when South Sudan
formally declared its independence from the Republic of the Sudan. However, the
South Sudanese government and others have expressed dissatisfaction with the
city's suitability as a national capital, and the government studied a
proposal that would see a new planned city built as a replacement capital
elsewhere, most likely Ramciel in Lakes. On 5 September 2011, the government
announced the capital would indeed move some 250 km away from Juba to Ramciel,
which is situated at the middle of South Sudan and about 60 km from Yirol West
County of lakes state. Government
Juba is led by a city council headed by Mayor Mohammed El Haj Baballa. This
council was formed in March 2011 and Baballa appointed to lead it by Governor
Clement Wani Konga. Former Yei County Commissioner David Lokonga Moses was
appointed as deputy mayor. A ministerial committee to keep Juba clean and
sanitary was also created by gubernatorial decree at the same time.
Prior to March 2011, the area now administered by Juba City Council was
divided into Juba, Kator, and Muniki payams. It is now a standalone
subdivision of Juba County, of which it is the county seat.
Infrastructure The city is a river port and the
southern terminus of traffic along the Nile, properly called the Bahr al Jabal
section of the White Nile. Before the civil war, Juba was also a transport
hub, with highways connecting it to Kenya, Uganda and the Democratic
Republic of the Congo. Because of the war Juba can hardly be
called a transport hub anymore. Roads and the river harbour are currently not
in use due to disrepair. The United Nations and Southern Sudanese government
are repairing the roads, but full repair is expected to take many years. In 2003,
the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action started to clear the roads leading from
Juba to Uganda and Kenya. It was expected that these roads would be
completely de-mined and rebuilt in the course of 2006–2008. The rebuilding of
the roads, which are mostly un-paved, takes a tremendous amount of effort and
time because of the limited work season due to the lengthy rainy season, which
lasts from March until October. The roads are important for the peace
process in Sudan as people need them to return to their homes and to regain what
they feel is a normal life. The first road that has started to be rebuilt is
the road to Uganda. This road is particularly important, as many of the
original inhabitants of Juba fled to Uganda during the war. As of 2009, there
are three paved roads in Juba, one which was re-surfaced in July. The main one is
a concrete road, built by the British in the 1950s.
As of April 2009, Juba International Airport is the site of large numbers of
flights bringing UN and NGO aid into Southern Sudan, as well as passengers
and general air freight. The airport is very busy, among the busiest in East
Africa. The construction of a new terminal was begun in late 2007 when the
oil prices were very high. Since then, with the oil prices going back down, the
fate of the new terminal is uncertain. Building on the new terminal restarted
in early 2014 As of February 2014, there are daily flights to Jomo Kenyatta
International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya; Khartoum International Airport in Sudan;
Entebbe International Airport in Entebbe, Uganda; and Bole International
Airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The United Nations Mission in South Sudan
has a large compound near the Juba Airport.
Between 2008 and 2011, the Ugandan government and the South Sudanese
government undertook joint efforts to develop a railway link between the
Northern Ugandan city of Gulu and Juba, with an extension to Wau. A memorandum
of understanding between the two governments was signed to that effect in
August 2008. The same memorandum outlined plans to develop the road
network between the two countries. Recent media reports from the region
suggest that the railway link from Juba may link directly with Kenya, bypassing
Uganda. The city's growth in the months and
years leading up to independence has been described as "chaotic".
Demography In 2005, Juba's population was 163,442.
Based on analysis of aerial photos, the best estimate of several donors working
in Juba calculated the 2006 population at approximately 250,000. The 5th Sudan
Population and Housing Census took place in April/May 2008, stating the
population of Juba County to be 372,413, but the results were rejected by the
Autonomous Government of Southern Sudan. Juba is developing very rapidly due to
oil money and the Chinese coming for work and development. In 2011, the
population of the city of Juba is estimated at approximately 372,410, but
may potentially be more. As of 2013, the city is growing at a rate of 4.23%.
Economy Juba has been described as undergoing an
economic boom, especially in the past five years and since independence. The
prospect of an economic boom has brought thousands of merchants to Juba, mostly
from northern Sudan and from East Africa. As of October 2010, several
regional and international businesses have established a presence in Juba. The
Commercial Bank of Ethiopia and the Kenyan banking conglomerate Kenya
Commercial Bank has its South Sudanese headquarters in the city and a branch
network of eleven branches throughout South Sudan. The three indigenous South
Sudanese commercial banks namely; Buffalo Commercial Bank, Ivory Bank and
Nile Commercial Bank, all maintain their headquarters in Juba. Equity Bank,
another regional finance services provider also has a branch in Juba.
National Insurance Corporation, the leading Ugandan insurance services
provider, maintains an office in the city. Despite recent economic
difficulties brought about by the December 15th 2013 civil war, Juba has
continued to grow and construction is still booming. This is probably due to
the high demand for affordable housing and hotel accommodations.
Climate Juba has a tropical wet and dry climate,
and as it lies near the equator, temperatures are hot year-round.
However, little rain falls from November to March, which is also the time of the
year with the hottest maximum temperatures, reaching 38 °C in
February. From April to October, more than 100 millimetres of rain falls per
month. The annual total precipitation is nearly 1,000 mm.
People from Juba Aheu Deng, beauty queen and fashion
model. Bangs, rapper and YouTube personality.
Independent Moses Nunuh, first child born in South Sudan after its
independence. In common with many other children in South Sudan, he died before
his first birthday. See also
Equatoria Eastern Equatoria
Central Equatoria Western Equatoria
Gulu-Nimule Road Lainya County
Railway stations in South Sudan Yei, South Sudan
References External links
Fisher, J. 2005, 'Southern Sudan's Front-line Town', BBC News, 20 April
2005. Holt, K. 2007, 'In pictures: Juba's
Street Struggle', BBC News, 4 January 2007.
Sudan And Uganda Sign MoU To Develop Infrastructure
'Gulu-Juba rail link underway' World's Newest Nation would Start Almost
from Scratch – article & video by McClatchy
Profile of The City of Juba