The volatile security situation in South Sudan has continued to take a toll on the once-vibrant Oraba border post, with the Ugandan government registering low revenue.

The nearly abandoned Oraba border post that used to register more than 150 trucks passing through it daily, is now suffering with only about 10 to 15 trucks being cleared daily. Yet, in the 2022/23 Financial Year, a total of 1,842 trucks were cleared, and Shs1.3 billion was collected from the Oraba border point.

The 2025 records from URA and Immigration office at Oraba border post in Koboko District indicate that the trucks coming from South Sudan are mainly carrying charcoal and timber. And a few trucks are cleared to enter South Sudan from this route because of the fear of ambushes on the highway.

South Sudan conflict

The officer-in-charge of Oraba Customs Station, Mr Simon Kalema, said early this month that because of the insecurity in South Sudan areas of Kaya, Yei and Kajo-Keji, most traders and truckers have stopped using the route and this has affected revenue collection. “When the war resumed in March/April in South Sudan, our performance in revenue collection was affected. We recently lost some traders there. We pray that the situation calms down in South Sudan and our traders keep using this route such that our revenue grows,” he said.

During a visit to Oraba border post early this month, the Minister of State for Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, Gen Wilson Mbadi, urged the Government of Uganda to address challenges at Oraba Border Post in Koboko and other areas in West Nile so as to increase trade volume. “We will hold talks with the DR Congo and South Sudan authorities to resolve the issues of visa requirements among other challenges, as there should be free movement of people, products, and services within the region according to EAC Common Market Protocols,” he said. Mbadi reaffirmed the government’s commitment to ensuring conditions that support cross-border trade with the neighbouring countries of South Sudan and DR Congo.

He said the government would work with its South Sudan counterpart to restore security at the Oraba border post and also ensure that challenges faced at other posts on the Uganda-DR Congo and Uganda-South Sudan borders are speedily resolved to enable trade to flourish. The head of clearing agents at the Oraba border post, Mr Peter Atiku, said that because of the low cargo traffic on the Koboko-Oraba route, the number of clearing agents at the border point has reduced from 20 to eight. “Most of our traders do not pass through this place, and they are now using the Elegu border because they fear attacks. And this has affected our revenue,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Muto Agabito, the chairman of the business community of Oraba Town Council, revealed that the continued insecurity at the border areas of South Sudan has greatly affected business in the town council. Recently, the Yei River County Commissioner, Mr Cyrus Aggrey, told the Daily Monitor that the government of South Sudan is committed to maintaining peace and the bilateral relationship between Uganda and South Sudan. “Our border with Uganda at Oraba is a historic border post which was very productive, especially for exports and imports, and our relationship existed long ago, just like Nimule-Elegu. It fostered international trade in East Africa. During the South Sudan liberation struggle, this was the busiest border post, which was supplying things to the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF),” he said.

Mr Aggrey added, “Although there were some interruptions from the National Army Salvation Front (NAS), the SSPDF has overcome most of the hotspots where roadblocks were being mounted by rebels for robberies and looting. To ensure that traffic is not interrupted, we have put regular patrols on the road, especially on the rebel hotspots.’’

Situation at other border points
While in West Nile, the Trade minister visited the following border posts: Goli in Nebbi District, Padea in Zombo District, Vurra and Lia in Arua District.

Apart from insecurity at Oraba, border posts in West Nile also face other challenges, such as a shortage of weighing bridges and scanners for goods, among others. The Uganda traders also find challenges in the exchange rates, where they first exchange the Ugandan shillings into the Congolese Franc and then to US dollars, and in the process, they end up making losses. Ms Robinah Ayo, the chairperson of Goli Women Multi-purpose Cross-border Traders’ Cooperative Union, said EAC states should expedite the implementation of the single regional currency so that traders do not suffer losses through the multiple currency exchanges.

The URA Supervisor for the West Nile region, Mr Deogratius Kaleebi, said the steady growth of trade at Goli, Vurra, Padea, and Lia border posts has created a challenge of inadequate parking space, which has resulted in delays, with long queues of cargo trucks.

Ugandan traders operating in DR Congo have also complained about mistreatment. The traders said that they are only allowed to access markets through agents and middlemen, to whom they give their goods, and sometimes they are not paid. In 2022, with support from UKaid through Trademark Africa, the Government of Uganda upgraded Mpondwe, Ntoroko, and Goli border posts into one-stop border posts to facilitate trade by expediting cargo clearance, reducing delays and costs associated with customs and other border procedures, and improving border marine services for Ntoroko. However, several challenges still exist, and traders have called on the government to expeditiously resolve them.