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JUBA, March 6 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan has increased work permit fees for foreign workers amid biting economic crunch to widen its revenue base, officials said in a circular seen on Monday.
The ministry of Public Services released circular listing new work permit fees for all foreign workers in the war-torn country.
It increased the work permit rates for professional/business class from 400 U.S dollars to 10,000 dollars, blue collar jobs to 2,000 dollars and casual laborers 1,000 dollars effective from the date of issue on March 2.
The decision that came after the UN declaration of famine in parts of the country in late February, has been viewed as a veiled target on foreigners working in humanitarian agencies that are helping majority of South Sudanese displaced and suffering from the more than three years of brutal conflict.
However, President Salva Kiir's spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny dismissed allegations of clamping down on humanitarian workers, saying the decision was driven by national interest.
"Work permit is a routine. Any country in the world has a right to impose work permits on foreigners. If you can't pay 10,000 dollars, then you hire a local person instead (of foreigner)," he said in Juba.
"Is there any in the world that does not have regulation for foreigners. Instead the government of South Sudan was asleep and it has now woken up," he added.
He added the decision was not likely to have a diplomatic backlash on the landlocked country which depends entirely on it's neighbors for her imports.
South Sudan in 2016 got admitted into the regional trade bloc East African Community (EAC) which among member countries calls for removal of non-trade barriers, harmonization of work permits and free movement of people and labor across borders. Enditem
