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STORY: SOUTH SUDAN / CATTLE KEEPERS SAFE MIGRATION CORRIDORS
TRT: 02:43
SOURCE: UNMISS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ARABIC / ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 25 FEBRUARY 2026, MUNDRI, SOUTH SUDAN
1. Various shots, Cattle moving in Mundri, Western Equatoria
2. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Tito Ker Manaya, Mundri resident:
“I was on a mission to meet the cattle keepers to request their chiefs to come and meet the local authority. I wanted to take one of them with me. Then I realized that I was shot from behind and this has affected me very badly. I am down. My children cannot go to school. I am unable to provide for their needs because I am now disabled, moving with crutches.”
3. Various shots, Cattle keepers moving their livestock across Mundri
4. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Zilpha Dawa, Mundri West County Commissioner:
“These cattle keepers are disturbing our community; they are destroying farms. The step we are taking is to have dialogue with them. They always fight among themselves, and this is affecting the host community. The local community cannot go out for things like fishing and beekeeping. We also want to engage our youth in Greater Mundri in dialogue because we want equal participation of our youth as they are the backbone of the country.”
5. Various shots, UN peacekeepers on a long-distance patrol monitoring the movement of cattle and the risk of insecurity in Mundri
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Emmanuel Dukundane, Civil Affairs Officer:
“We continue to engage the County authority, including the traditional leaders on how to make sure there is peaceful seasonal migration, peaceful coexistence between the pastoralists and the host community — to ensure that we have peaceful communities in the State. This is in line with our mandate in terms of protection of civilians and supporting the peace process, including the grassroots peace process.”
7. Wide shot, Cattle moving in Mundri.
In Mundri West, the changing seasons bring cattle — and with them, both opportunity and uncertainty. Each year, pastoralists migrate in search of water and grazing land. But as herds move across farmland and fishing areas, tensions rise with host communities. Competition over land and resources has too often turned into conflict, disrupting livelihoods and threatening lives. For one community member, what began as a simple mission of peace ended in tragedy.
SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Tito Ker Manaya, Mundri resident:
“I was on a mission to meet the cattle keepers to request their chiefs to come and meet the local authority. I wanted to take one of them with me. Then I realized that I was shot from behind and this has affected me very badly. I am down. My children cannot go to school. I am unable to provide for their needs because I am now disabled, moving with crutches.”
Despite the challenges, local authorities are choosing dialogue over division with community leaders bringing together chiefs, elders, women, and youth to find practical solutions — from agreeing on migration routes to protecting farmland and fishing areas.
SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Zilpha Dawa, Mundri West County Commissioner:
“These cattle keepers are disturbing our community; they are destroying farms. The step we are taking is to have dialogue with them. They always fight among themselves, and this is affecting the host community. The local community cannot go out for things like fishing and beekeeping. We also want to engage our youth in Greater Mundri in dialogue because we want equal participation of our youth as they are the backbone of the country.”
Under its Protection of Civilians mandate, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan continues to support these local peace efforts. By facilitating dialogue and strengthening community structures, the mission is working alongside county authorities and traditional leaders to prevent violence before it erupts.
SOUNDBITE (English) Emmanuel Dukundane, Civil Affairs Officer:
“We continue to engage the County authority, including the traditional leaders on how to make sure there is peaceful seasonal migration, peaceful coexistence between the pastoralists and the host community — to ensure that we have peaceful communities in the State. This is in line with our mandate in terms of protection of civilians and supporting the peace process, including the grassroots peace process.”
Through sustained dialogue, communities are identifying safe migration corridors, addressing grievances early and peacefully to protect livelihoods and build a better future together.
