Less than two years after South Sudan’s independence from Sudan, the country was engulfed in civil war that killed, maimed, displaced, and destroyed livelihoods of millions of people. The war has disrupted South Sudan’s oil
production, the implementation of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), state building, democratic process, and economic development. Several peace efforts made by the international community and the region to end the war and stabilize the country have also failed. A cycle of violence, human rights violations, war crimes and poor humanitarian conditions in South Sudan persist as the international community and stakeholders continue to push for peace. This article attempts to examine various peace efforts and conflict management
strategies implemented so far and why the efforts have failed. To secure peace in the nascent country, the article recommends addressing of crimes and violence, fair power distribution, and the involvement of peace guarantors
(UN, AU, and IGAD).