In Gondokoro, some 25 kilometers east of the capital Juba, locals are concerned. An influx of livestock herders has increased competition for already scarce resources, particularly land, leading to tensions among residents, internally displaced persons and the pastoralists.

“Farms and crops have been destroyed and some of our animals stolen. It is still not safe for us to return to our homes,” says Sarah Gelerino, who lives nearby, across the Nile, after having been displaced in 2022.

Lina Keji, a Gondokoro resident, adds that insecurity is not the only consequence of a larger local population.

“Our healthcare facilities have suffered from a shortage of medicines for months. Transporting a sick person to Juba, or to go there to buy medication, is very expensive, which means that walking is the only option for most of us,” she says.

Government efforts to make cattle keepers from elsewhere go home mean that Gondokoro is currently a somewhat less violent place than it was a couple of years ago, but some problems do persist.

Local cattle owner Achirin Mayar is blunt about it.

“In the past, we ran from lions. Now we flee from humans with guns. This must stop,” he says, referring to the proliferation of small arms that worries most people living here.

To prevent a breakdown of law and order, they believe the government should disarm all civilians, without exceptions. Community director John Gabriel Ladu would welcome that but thinks that more is needed.

“Local authorities must engage with the feuding parties to resolve their differences, otherwise we won’t have peace in the area,” he says.

According to Captain Zakariya, the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces have established checkpoints in strategic locations to better protect civilians.

“We would like community leaders and traditional chiefs to encourage displaced people to return home and start farming, and we are trying to make that safe.”

Despite existing tensions, Lauro Ohiyu, who serves with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and was part of the delegation that visited Gondokoro, is optimistic.

“We were encouraged to see local authorities' consistent calls for people to return home. UNMISS and the UN family are committed to working with the State Government and partners to make this a safe place for everyone, not least for those who want to go back to where they used to live.” UNMISS