Festus Gontebanye Mogae
Monday, 11 May 2026 | Author – Andrew Michael | Nairobi, Kenya| Photo: Yarona FM | GT-News |
Former Botswana president Festus Gontebanye Mogae, who helped steer South Sudan’s troubled peace process after the country’s civil war, has died, the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC) said Friday.
He was 86.
RJMEC, the body overseeing implementation of South Sudan’s peace agreement, said in a statement it had received news of the death of its first chairperson “with profound sadness”.
Mogae was appointed by the East African regional bloc IGAD in October 2015 to head the then Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC), tasked with supervising implementation of the peace deal signed between rival South Sudanese factions.
The former Botswana leader played a leading role in setting up the commission and guiding the early implementation of the 2015 Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (ARCSS).
RJMEC credited him with helping secure the formation of South Sudan’s first Transitional Government of National Unity in April 2016.
After renewed fighting erupted in Juba in July 2016, Mogae advocated for revitalising the peace agreement and pushed rival parties back to negotiations.
His mediation efforts helped pave the way for the signing of the revitalised peace accord, known as the R-ARCSS, in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa in September 2018.
“The R-ARCSS remains, to date, the most viable framework for building lasting peace, unity, reconciliation and democratisation in the Republic of South Sudan,” RJMEC said.
The commission praised Mogae’s “diplomatic skill, moral authority, and tireless advocacy”, saying his leadership inspired confidence among South Sudanese political actors as well as regional and international partners.
Mogae stepped down as RJMEC chairperson in October 2018.
In his farewell remarks, he urged South Sudan’s leaders to prioritise development over conflict, saying: “Instead of buying guns, buy textbooks and turn swords into ploughshares.”
Mogae served as Botswana’s president from 1998 to 2008 and was widely respected across Africa for his leadership and promotion of good governance.
RJMEC said he died Friday in Botswana’s capital, Gaborone.
The commission extended condolences to his family and to the people and government of Botswana, praising his legacy of public service and commitment to peace.
