Progress of South Sudan peace process impressive – Ruto

President William Ruto has exuded confidence in the progress of the South Sudan peace process.

The President while receiving the progress report from chief mediator odf the South Sudan peace process,Lt Gen (Rtd) Lazarus Sumbeiywo, said he was impressed by the South Sudan peace process.

"Kenya is impressed by the South Sudan peace process, recognising the importance of stability in the neighbouring state and the region," he said.

"Received a progress report from South Sudan Chief Mediator Lt Gen (Rtd) Lazarus Sumbeiywo on the peace process ahead of the inauguration of the mediation team later this week."

In March, Ruto named Sumbeiywo the chief mediator between hold-out groups and the government in Juba.

The President said he had been assigned the role at the request of President Salva Kiir of South Sudan.

He was to facilitate talks in Nairobi with opposition groups and other sections of society in that country.

The warring groups include holdout opposition groups organised under the rubric of South Sudan Opposition Alliance, religious groups and civil society.

Ruto said he turned to Sumbeiywo because of his previous experience as chief mediator in the Sudanese crisis.

"Based on your wealth of experience and invaluable contribution in negotiating and the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005, I appoint you as the Chief Mediator from April 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025," Ruto said in a dispatch from State House.

Sumbeiywo was Kenya’s Special Envoy on Sudan between 1997 and 1998 before former President Daniel Moi later assigned him the role of mediating between the government in Khartoum, under Omar al-Bashir, and the late John Garang's Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM).

The mediation led to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005 which gave Southern Sudan autonomy and later led to a referendum for independence in 2011, which created South Sudan.