On the 24th of July 2025, as part of preparations for the general elections scheduled for December 2026, the Election Security Committee (ESC), chaired by the National Police Service (NPS), and includes representatives of the National Elections Commission (NEC) and the UN Integrated Electoral Assistance Team (UN IEAT) presented findings of assessments of NPS premises in 10 states and the Ruweng Administrative Area to the Acting Minister of Interior, the Chairperson of the National Elections Commission, representatives of civil society and the Senior Leadership of the National Police Service.The assessment exercises that began in February 2025 and that completed in July 2025 were to establish the requirements for the re-establishment of Joint Electoral Operations Centers (JEOCs) across the country. The assessment of the Greater Pibor Administrative Area is planned to take place in August 2025.
The establishment of JEOCs at the national and sub-national level are an important security, information sharing and coordination mechanism amongst relevant electoral stakeholders, namely the NEC, NPS, and the broader security apparatus of South Sudan. The assessments, conducted under the leadership of NPS, in partnership with the NEC and UN IEAT, revealed that in all locations the pre-existing JEOC structures utilized for the 2010 elections and the 2011 referendum were badly damaged during the 2013 conflict, hence will require reconstruction and refurbishing.
The NPS and NEC expect the JEOCs to play an essential role as the key mechanism for election security coordination, including prevention of electoral violence and support election security operations. The recommendation of the ESC is to re-establish JEOCs in all states and administrative areas for election security coordination and support the building of trust and confidence for a credible, inclusive and peaceful electoral process across the country.
Under the auspices of the IGP, the Elections Security Committee presented the findings to raise awareness around the status of JEOCs and the need to allocate funding to the reconstruction and refurbishment of such electoral security structures.
