JUBA, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- The South Sudanese government on Thursday denied media reports that it had expelled foreign nationals.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said that the government remains committed to the rule of law, legitimate investment and maintaining constructive relations with foreign nationals and their countries.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has taken note of the recent public statements concerning the participation of foreign nationals in small-scale commercial activities in Juba," the ministry said in a statement issued in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.
"The ministry wishes to clarify that there is no directive from the national government requiring foreign nationals to leave South Sudan. The government recognizes that commercial activities are subject to applicable laws and regulations and any measures relating to such activities are to be addressed by the competent authorities in accordance with the law," the ministry said.
The statement followed Monday's directive by Juba County Caretaker Commissioner Kalisto Lado Faustino Nyigilo, which ordered foreign nationals out of retail business in favor of South Sudanese citizens.
Nyigilo also restricted foreign traders to wholesale activities and banned operations in semi-permanent structures.
In 2015, then-Interior Minister Aleu Ayieny Aleu issued a ministerial order banning foreign nationals from the local commercial transport sector, arguing that South Sudanese citizens were being disadvantaged.
South Sudan has one of the world's youngest populations and one of the highest unemployment rates, in an oil-dependent economy weakened by years of conflict. ■