ABSTRACT
On July 9, 2011, the Republic of South Sudan seceded from Sudan, becoming the world’s newest state. Hope for progress toward state formation and sustainable peace surrounded independence celebrations. Six years later, however, South Sudan now ranks as the world’s most fragile state (Messner, 2017). Even with a significant global peacebuilding effort, ethnic conflict and political violence, state-sponsored violence in disputed areas such as Abeyei and the Nuba Mountains, and humanitarian crises undermine the ability of South Sudan to build a functional, peaceful state.
