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South Sudan

South Sudan: CVA Best Practices in the Context of High Inflation

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Background

The civil war that began in 2013 sent the country into an uncontrollable and escalating economic as well as food insecurity crises. The signing of a peace agreement brought relative stability, but inflation rate has remained very high. South Sudan’s economic crisis has been driven by the rapidly depreciating value of the South Sudanese Pound (SSP), shortages of hard currency, and the significant dependence on imports. Food insecurity remains alarmingly high in South Sudan with increased & protracted displacement, economic decline and inflation, high food price hikes exacerbated by the impact of poor market functionality due the protracted conflict as well as the political uncertainty in most of the supply routes in the country.

The South Sudan Joint Market Monitoring Initiative (JMMI) 2022 report stated market functionality have been affected by the depreciation of the local currency, with most traders not being able to restock commodities, resulting in acute shortages and high prices.

As DCA South Sudan we strategized to lessen the effect of inflation on our right holders using hard currency for the cash assistance, utilization of the market information to inform the amount of cash to be distributed and the market support initiatives. This helped them to better withstand ongoing inflation and the deteriorating situation on the ground.