ADDIS ABABA, June 20 (Xinhua) -- East African foreign ministers on Thursday urged South Sudanese parties to sustain the current relative calm and stability in the country.
East African foreign ministers, who make up the Intergovernmental Authority on Development's (IGAD) Council of Ministers, made the urgent call to South Sudanese factions in a statement issued on Thursday, which followed the council's latest meeting in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.
The IGAD Council of Ministers considered the report of the IGAD Special Envoy for South Sudan, Ismael Wais and the Interim Chairperson of the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (R-JMEC) Augostino Njoroge, said the statement.
The council "commends the South Sudanese parties for the continued relative calm and stability in the country," the statement read.
Taking note of the "positive developments" in the implementation of the revitalized peace accord, the council further called on "all parties to the agreement to continue their engagement in the peace process."
It also urged "all the parties of the agreement to abide by the provision of the agreement on the participation of women in all institutions and mechanisms."
The council further reiterated the essential imperative for South Sudan's government "to urgently disburse the funds for the implementation of the critical pending tasks as pledged."
Noting the updates on the progress in implementing the pledges of IGAD member states, the council further called on Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda "to provide logistical and technical support to the cantonment process."
South Sudan descended into civil war in late 2013, and the conflict has created one of the fastest growing refugee crises in the world.
The UN estimates that about 4 million South Sudanese have been displaced internally and externally.
The peace deal signed in August 2015 collapsed following renewed violence in the capital, Juba, in July 2016.
Under the latest peace deal, opposition leader Riek Machar, along with four others, will once again be reinstated as President Salva Kiir's deputy.
Signatories to the fragile peace agreement agreed on May 3 to extend the formation of a transitional government by six months, following delays in the implementation of the pact over unresolved security issues.
East African foreign ministers call came after the conclusion of the two-day 68th Extra-Ordinary Session of the IGAD Council of Ministers that was held in Addis Ababa.
