Digital Destiny for a Young Nation
Each tap on a smartphone screen in South Sudan hints at a broader conversation: are online freedoms keeping pace with the nation’s aspirations? Citizens and jurists say access to the Internet now shapes education, business and speech as decisively as roads or classrooms.
Rights Defined in the Digital Age
Bida Emmanuel calls digital rights an online extension of traditional liberties, embracing expression, privacy, information and protection from abuse. Lawyer Peter Ajak Ayom adds the power to create and share content without censorship, while Bol Yaach Kuany points to Chapter Two of the 2011 Constitution as the legal anchor.
Constitutional Safeguards Meet Connectivity Hurdles
Despite those clauses, Kuany concedes it is hard to claim universal enjoyment of digital rights. Frequent power outages, high data costs and occasional government-ordered shutdowns keep many screens dark. The gap, he says, shows that “text on paper does not automatically translate into bandwidth in practice”.
Urban-Rural Divide in Online Access
Connectivity clusters in Juba, where mobile towers and diesel generators at least offer intermittent service. Bida contrasts this with vast rural counties lacking electricity grids, fibre lines or affordable 4G. A monthly data bundle costing three US dollars in the capital can exceed a farmer’s weekly income elsewhere.
Political and Economic Barriers
Ter Manyang Gatwech of the Center for Peace and Advocacy argues that politics, not just infrastructure, curtails progress. Leaders, he says, invoke the nation’s youthfulness to delay investment while maintaining control over information flows. He calls internet connectivity “an absolute right, not a luxury dependent on budget cycles”.
Voices Calling for Policy Action
Advocates urge a clear roadmap: fibre-optic expansion, subsidised rural towers and transparent data governance. Comparing Kenya’s public Wi-Fi initiatives, Manyang asks lawmakers to view connectivity as a catalyst for jobs, research and innovation. For a generation born after 2011, the screen is rapidly becoming the new civic square.