8 years of independence for South Sudan [The Morning Call]

Come tomorrow Tuesday July 9th, it will be eight years of independence for South Sudan.

But its government says there are no plans for celebrations. And why? We give you some background to this.

Eight years ago on July 9, and after 22 years of civil war, the country split from Sudan.

There were huge hopes that independence would bring peace. Today, almost seven million people, more than half the population, are facing acute levels of conflict-related hunger with 860,000 children likely to suffer from malnutrition according to the Norwegian refugee council.