Misleading & Inaccurate Allegations by Sign of Hope

Zurich, 16 April 2018 - The latest assertion by aid organisation Sign of Hope (SoH) about PETRONAS’ position in South Sudan is inaccurate and misleading. As a responsible organisation, the interests of local communities where we operate is paramount to PETRONAS. PETRONAS has a long-standing record of community development projects, including in South Sudan, based on industry international best practices and adherence to host countries’ laws and regulations. 

We encourage SoH not to dwell on its allegations against PETRONAS and our affiliates’ activities in South Sudan and constructively focus on what we can do together to make a positive impact on the lives of the people. PETRONAS has been actively involved with our long-standing efforts in corporate social responsibility in South Sudan from as early as 1995. PETRONAS further identified opportunities and potential ways to collaborate with Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to continue with our efforts in South Sudan. 

We remain open to SoH’s views about improving the situation in contention and urge a more constructive approach to exploring options in South Sudan. 

Revisiting inaccurate allegations will not help in achieving the goal of making a difference to the lives of the respective local communities. We too, had our community development efforts interrupted in the unrest of 2013, and are keen to resume our efforts in South Sudan as soon as conditions safely permit us to do so. With this in mind, we welcome future discussion on how we can work together with SoH on initiatives related to these community-focused efforts in South Sudan, in addition to those already put in place by PETRONAS and our partners. 

While we strongly refute SoH’s latest allegations, we continue to hope for a more constructive approach in finding mutually acceptable outcomes for the local communities in South Sudan. 

Issued by

Media Engagement Department
Group Strategic Communications
PETRONAS