July 18, 2025 (Juba, South Sudan): The South Sudan’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) with support from the IGAD Secretariat convened the 7th Coordination Meeting on Migration and Displacement Statistics in the Country.
The four-day workshop that took place from July 15-18, 2025, in Juba City, brought together representatives from various ministries, departments, and agencies engaged in the production and utilisation of migration and displacement statistics.
Under the National Coordination Mechanism (NCM) on Migration, the South Sudan National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), leads the Technical Working Group (TWG) on Migration and Displacement Statistics. This working group is tasked with improving the coordination, enhancing the availability and harmonization of migration and displacement data across all government ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) engaged in the production and use of migration and displacement statistics.
This forum served as a space for information exchange, data sharing, and collaboration across key institutions.
The Head of Social Development at the IGAD Secretariat, Dr. Victoria Anib commended the effort of the TWG as an example of ownership and collaboration in building a stronger migration data ecosystem.
Dr. Anib said that the coordination was timely in a season when South Sudan was experiencing significant population movements due to protracted conflict, humanitarian crises, and the spillover effects of the ongoing crisis in Sudan.
“Over the years, this coordination platform has grown in strength and scope, enabling better information sharing, improved institutional collaboration, and a more harmonized national approach to migration statistics,” said Dr. Anib.
“Accurate data enables governments and actors to design effective, evidence-based policies and programs that respond to contextual needs.”
The meeting was attended by senior experts responsible for migration data from the Ministries of Interior, Justice, Labour, Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Gender Child and Social Welfare, Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, General Education and Instruction and the Ministry of Higher Education.
Other specialized institutions such as the Commission for Refugee Affairs, the Relief and Rehabilitation Commission, Criminal Investigation Department, Bank of South Sudan and National Revenue Authority among others attended the workshop.
The Director General of the South Sudan National Bureau of Statistics, Dr. Augustino Ting Mayai, thanked the members of the TWG for the progress made in the collaboration to collect and share data which the Government is using to offer interventions for migrants and displaced persons.
He said that the National Bureau of Statistics would continue to offer technical support to members of the TWG in areas of data collection, management and sharing to the National Statistics Database.
On behalf of the partners, IOM South Sudan’s David Chumamoi applauded the progressive effort of the partnership, emphasizing that the commitment was necessary for South Sudan to meet its obligation under the Global Compact on Migration (GCM). David appealed to the participants to recognize migration as a means of fostering development.
Participants presented the updated migration and displacement datasets collected by their MDAs, sharing experiences in collection, management and key challenges encountered. The newly instituted Data Sharing Protocols, the Harmonised Data Sharing Tool, and the National Centralised Database hosted under the National Bureau of Statistics were discussed in the meeting.
Participants made several recommendations in institutional strengthening of the TWG, data governance and coordination, data systems and gender mainstreaming among others. Further suggestions were made on the formalization of Data Sharing Protocols, the implementation of the Harmonized Data Tool, strengthening the centralized database and establishment of a monitoring and evaluation mechanism. Participants also recommended for implementation a gender and data strategy and the need to mobilise sustainable domestic resources.
