South Sudan president sacks central bank governor

South Sudanese President Salva Kiir Saturday evening fired the governor of the Bank of South Sudan (BSS) amid rising inflation and a biting economic crisis that threatens survival of the East African nation.

Kiir replaced outgoing bank governor Kornelio Koryom Mayik by the bank's former foreign exchange director, Othom Rago Ajak, according to a decree broadcast on state-radio Sunday morning.

The president gave no reason for the sacking of Mayik, but there had been rumors that Kiir's government was getting impatient with the central bank chief due to high inflation and depreciation of the South Sudanese Pound (SSP) against the dollar after the central bank abandoned the fixed exchange rates in favor of floating exchange rates in December 2015.

The South Sudanese leader also sacked the Deputy Governor of Central Bank John Dor Majok, Deputy Minister of Finance Mary Jervas Yak and Salvatore Garang, First Undersecretary of the Finance Ministry and Economic Planning.

Conflict-hit South Sudan plunged into economic crunch following eruption of civil war in 2013 between supporters of Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar.

The conflict has drained the oil-rich country of much-needed revenue generated from oil production, leaving the country's ailing economy on the verge of collapse as inflation reached 800 percent in January.

A peace deal signed in August 2015 led to the formation of a transitional unity government in last April, but was shattered by renewed fighting in July 2016.

Tens of thousands of South Sudanese have been killed, over two million displaced and another 4.6 million left severely food insecure since December 2013. Endit