By Alan Clement
The Mayor of Nimule Municipality, has called on local law firms and business operators to prioritize legal registration to strengthen accountability and curb exploitation by unregistered foreign enterprises.
Mayor Caesar stressed that all businesses including clearance agencies, forest bureaus, Forex bureaus, mobile money operators, and money lenders must register with municipal authorities, even if they are already licensed elsewhere warning that “unregistered businesses are difficult to track and could be involved in wrong or illicit trade.”
In an exclusive interview with No.1 Citizen Daily English Newspaper, Caesar disclosed that he already officially notified business owners to register with the Municipal authorities. “I wrote an official letter to them. I need them to come and register so we know when they started, what they do, how many staff they have, and whether their documents are authentic,” Caesar explained.
He also elaborated on the risks posed by unregulated enterprises stating, “Nimule being a busy town and entry point, there are a lot of scrupulous behaviors taking place. Businesses like Forex Bureaus and mobile money operators from across East Africa operate without proper documentation.”
During the interview, the mayor also expressed concern over clearing and forwarding agents, noting that despite their dealings with customs, the municipality must maintain its own records. “We are the hosting authority. Somebody could be doing something in our name without our knowledge,” he added, citing Nimule’s diverse population of all 64 South Sudanese tribes and international residents.
Nimule, once a village, has recently been elevated to municipality status a milestone Mayor Caesar sees as a stepping stone toward cityhood. “If we don’t start cleaning now, we’ll carry all this unverified data into the future,” he cautioned.
The mayor also touched based on the influx of advocates into Nimule as the town grows stressing the need to regulate law firms, both local and international, by registering them within the municipality. “It’s better to have a register of these advocates in the municipality. We need to know: are they international or local? Are their documents authentic?”
While clarifying Nimule Municipality’s mandate, Caesar clarified that Nimule Municipality is not responsible for international business transactions, such as truck clearance, which falls under the South Sudan Revenue Authority. However, he advocated for local benefit-sharing. “As they pass through our land, there are things that need to be reconsidered. Just like Unity State receives 2% of oil revenue, the same should apply to our municipality.”
Mayor Caesar also criticized the misuse of South Sudan’s free-market policies by foreign traders who dominate both wholesale and retail sectors, disadvantaging local entrepreneurs. “If you give multimillion-dollar investors the upper hand in both businesses, we’re contributing to the downfall of our country,” he said, aligning his remarks with President Salva Kiir Mayardit’s vision of lifting citizens out of poverty.
Local advocates welcomed the initiative, pledging to raise awareness about land rights and offering legal support for municipal demarcation efforts.
According to the Transitional Constitution of South Sudan (2011), all land belongs to the people and is held in trust by the government on their behalf. This underscores the importance of legal clarity, business oversight, and municipal regulation in fast-growing towns like Nimule, South Sudan’s busiest entry point.