Kiir removes longtime minister Lomuro from cabinet
President Salva Kiir has replaced Martin Elia Lomuro, who served for nearly two decades, with Bol Wek Agoth as minister of cabinet affairs.
South Sudanese President Salva Kiir Mayardit has removed Martin Elia Lomuro, the minister of cabinet affairs, after nearly two decades in government. Lomuro was first appointed to a ministerial role in 2005. Bol Wek Agoth, the former governor of Warrap State, has been appointed to replace him. The decrees were broadcast on Wednesday night by the South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation.
Hussein Abdelbagi Akol, formerly a vice president, was appointed presidential adviser for international relations and foreign affairs, replacing Costello Garang Riiny. Angelo Ngot Mayar was named caretaker governor of Warrap State, succeeding Agoth. Lomuro's removal follows his October 20 order assigning acting ministers to national ministries lacking substantive caretaker ministers, a move intended to maintain administrative oversight.
Lomuro began his ministerial career in October 2005 in the autonomous Government of Southern Sudan. He served as minister of agriculture and forestry, then minister of animal resources and fisheries, before taking over the cabinet affairs portfolio in July 2013. He retained this position through successive administrations and in the caretaker government formed in September 2026.
Why it mattersThe removal of a long-serving minister and other appointments affect the coordination and administration of government business ahead of scheduled elections.