South Sudan’s Vice President Taban Deng Gai has finally held a face-to-face meeting with President Salva Kiir Mayardit after publicly complaining that he had been unable to access the president for nearly a year.
The meeting took place on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, at the State House in Juba.
It was also attended by Presidential Security Adviser Tut Gatluak Manime.
According to a statement from the Office of the President, the two leaders reviewed progress on key national infrastructure projects and discussed challenges hindering their implementation.
Taban Deng, who chairs the Infrastructure Cluster, briefed President Kiir on ongoing road projects, including:
- Pagak–Maiwut–Mathiang and Paloch corridors
- Roads in the Equatoria region (Juba–Lobonok, Juba–Yei–Kaya, and Maridi)
- Roads in the Bahr el Ghazal region (including Wau–Raja and Boro Medina)
He also raised the need to revitalize the Agricultural Bank to support agricultural productivity and ease inflation.
President Kiir described infrastructure as “a critical pillar for economic growth, national connectivity and service delivery.”
He directed Taban Deng to coordinate closely with relevant institutions to accelerate project implementation, remove bottlenecks, and ensure the Infrastructure Cluster delivers on its mandate.
The long-awaited meeting comes just days after Taban Deng publicly voiced frustration during funeral prayers in Juba.
He revealed that his last meeting with Kiir was in May 2025, shortly after returning from Unity State, and claimed that letters and travel requests (including one to visit Unity State) had been blocked by officials in the presidency.
The development highlights internal frictions within South Sudan’s fragile unity government under the 2018 Revitalized Peace Agreement.
Taban Deng serves as one of the five vice presidents and is a senior member of President Kiir’s SPLM party.
No immediate further details or additional outcomes from the meeting were released.
