Juba

Juba, the capital and largest city of South Sudan, exemplifies the resilience and aspirations of the nascent nation. Along the White Nile, this city is the capital of Central Equatoria State and the political hub of the country. Juba’s new classification as national capital marks a turning point in South Sudan’s path toward independence and growth.

The city’s beginnings are in the early 20th century, more especially when the Church Missionary Society (CMS) arrived in the little Bari village of Juba during 1920-21. This first growth set the foundation for what would subsequently become a major metropolitan hub in the area. The city’s strategic location along the White Nile greatly helped it to grow and become important by giving necessary access to river transportation and easing ties to other parts of the nation.

Juba drew the attention of Anglo-Egyptian officials seeing its promise as it grew. Decisions were taken in the late 1920s to move the Bari people and create a new town serving as Mongalla Province’s capital. The position of the CMS Nugent Memorial Intermediate School and the site’s proximity to the Nile, thereby offering logistical advantages, partly influenced the decision. Significant building projects under way by 1927 shaped the original urban form of the city.

A turning point in the evolution of the city came with traders moving from Rejaf to Juba in 1929. The increasing commercial activity revived the growing metropolitan core. The Governor’s office of Mongalla was moved to Juba the next year, so strengthening its administrative center status. These changes provide the groundwork for Juba’s expected role as a center of trade and government for the area.

Greek traders had a major influence on Juba’s early growth, therefore affecting the city’s architecture and economy as well. Though their population was small—never more than 2,000—these industrious people developed close ties with the native Bari people. This cooperation resulted in the building of several still-existing buildings that are an essential part of Juba’s urban scene. Previously known as the Greek Quarter by British soldiers, the downtown Juba Market area and the neighborhood Hai Jalaba mirror the impact of Greek culture.

Greek traders are responsible for a great number of Juba’s famous constructions. Significant additions to the architectural and financial scene are the Ivory Bank, Notos Lounge, the former Sudan Airways Building, Paradise Hotel, and both Nile Commercial Bank and Buffalo Commercial Bank. Greek businessmen were instrumental in the creation of the Central Bank building in the middle of the 1940s; the Juba Hotel, built in the middle of the 1930s, shows their impact on the expansion of the city.

The complex political dynamics of Sudan and South Sudan are intimately entwined with the historical account of Juba. The city was joined Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, under joint control by the United Kingdom and the Kingdom of Egypt, between 1899 to 1956. Originally ruling southern Sudan separately from the north, the British started a program aiming at uniting the two areas in 1946. Taken without regard for southern points of view, the decision produced the Juba Conference. Though it seemed to appeal to Southerners, the meeting mostly sought to please northern Sudanese nationalists and the Egyptian authorities.

Conflict and struggle defined the path that finally resulted in Juba’s recognition as the capital of an independent country. The First Sudanese Civil War began in 1955 with a revolt of southern troops in Torit and lasted until 1972. Juba’s strategic importance made it a focal point of great bloodshed in the Second Sudanese Civil War. The wars shaped the development of the city and the common memories among its people.

One important turning point came with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005. Juba was set as the temporary capital of the Autonomous Government of Southern Sudan by this agreement. The city’s growing importance attracted more interest from across the world, which led the UN to strengthen its presence and set up the “OCHA Camp” as the center for several UN agencies and non-governmental groups.

Following South Sudan’s official announcement of independence from the Republic of the Sudan, Juba became the newest national capital in the world on July 9, 2011. This momentous occasion marked the end of years of work and set the groundwork for Juba’s continuous expansion as the hub of the newly formed country.

The change of the city to become the national capital has presented many difficulties. Some powerful people, including officials from the government of South Sudan, have expressed worries about Juba’s suitability for the seat of power. Plans for the creation of a new planned city—possibly in Ramciel, Lakes—have been put forward meant to replace the capital. The government declared on September 5, 2011, that the capital would be moved from Juba to Ramciel, some 250 kilometers away. Juba is still the de facto capital as of June 2020; the stated relocation has not taken place.

For Juba, recent years have brought opportunities as well as difficulties. A major tankers explosion happened in the city in September 2015, killing about 200 people and underlining the ongoing problems with urban development and safety. The Sudan Conflict of 2023 has lately caused an influx of around 6,000 refugees to Juba, many of which have settled in the nearby Gorom. The new newcomers struggle greatly with limited access to humanitarian aid and increasing the load on the city’s resources.