LAINYA, South Sudan, August 11, 2026/APO Group/ —
“Our home is the world, our bedroom is the soft grass underneath the night sky.”
Born in Darfur as member of the Fallata tribe, widely known as a sub-branch of the greater Ambororo cattle keeper community from West and Central Africa, Adam Garbar’s stories embody the spirit that motivates cattle keepers across the continent to continue following the path of their ancestors.
Despite insecurity plaguing parts of South Sudan, they spend their lives between roads and trees, never spending more than two weeks at the same location.
However, that two weeks can feel like a lifetime for local farming communities.
On the move with hundreds of family members and thousands of cattle, the arrival of nomadic tribes looking to feed their livestock during dry season is widely associated with danger.
Until earlier this year, one of their main migration stops in Lainya County was known as a conflict hotspot constantly rattled by violent clashes between local farmers and cattle herders from various tribes and origins.
Without proper agreements and lines of communication, cattle would feed on and destroy vital crops of local farming communities, causing conflict and, too often, loss of lives due to clashes or revenge killings that could have been prevented.
However, a change of government leadership in Lainya County has inspired a new approach.
“We used to react rather than prevent these issues from happening. These days, they inform us about their tentative migration plans so the first thing we do when they arrive is to call them and establish an open line of communication,” explains Lainya County Security Coordinator, Robert Sebit Tobia during a recent visit by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan.
As part of a multiple day patrol that navigated muddy terrain and almost impassable roads due to flooding, UNMISS peacekeepers came to engage with local authorities and communities while assessing the humanitarian and security situation.
“The situation has improved through the interventions of locally established peace and governance structures, local authority and security agencies. Following our engagement with multiple stakeholders on the complexity of cultural and habitual practices of all involved parties, the overall security situation in the county is fragile but now relatively calm,” says UNMISS Civil Affairs Division Officer, James Muriithi.
In places like Wonduruba, which became a safe haven for civilians across the county following violent cattle raid clashes in 2021, memories of conflict and accompanying grief are still very much alive.
However, these memories are gradually being overwritten by the efforts of Ambororo cattlekeepers and farmers working together to pave a path towards peace.
“For the first time, I am actually looking forward to the Ambororo passing through our town. Instead of expecting danger, I now think of the milk and interesting conversations they bring with them,” shares 23-year-old mother of four, Mary Gaba.
Her sentiments echo those of the cattle keepers who also found relief in the new coordination mechanisms.
“We are all trying to protect what we love. What better way is there to ask for what you need instead of simply taking it?,” says Adam Garbar.
Accordingly, they try their best to avoid confrontations by leaving their cattle to feed on grass outside the town when they come to trade. Should there be an incident where crop eating is unavoidable, they choose communication over conflict.
Looking back at the newfound peace, Lainya County Security Coordinator, Robert Tobia, concludes what may be widely known but too rarely employed:
“We are all people. If we approach others in a peaceful way, war can be prevented.”
