Aly-Khan Rajani, Ambassador of Canada to South Sudan

Message

I am delighted to serve as Canada’s Ambassador to South Sudan. I arrived in South Sudan in September 2023, and while this was my first time in country, I am proud to share that my family has deep roots here in East Africa. My career as a humanitarian also began not far from South Sudan, and I am honoured to be serving again in the region, with the task of deepening our two countries’ relations during this critical moment for South Sudan.

Canada has been present in South Sudan since independence, and our two countries share a longstanding relationship with many things in common:

• We are both made up of 10 states and 3 administrative areas (or 10 provinces and 3 territories);
• We are both blessed by abundant natural resources (and a proud tradition of cattle rearing);
• We are each walking our own paths of truth, reconciliation, and healing; and,
• We both have a rich tradition of pluralism.

These common values are underpinned by rich people-to-people ties. For its part, the South Sudanese diaspora in Canada is estimated at 20,000, located mainly in Western Canada (a region that I am proud to call home). Meanwhile, here in South Sudan, South Sudanese-Canadians are contributing to peace and prosperity at all levels, and across many areas of work. Whether by serving in the Council of Ministers, or driving growth and knowledge transfer as entrepreneurs, or fostering dialogue in their home communities, every day, South Sudanese-Canadians are making tangible contributions to South Sudan’s nation-building process.

Many of our people-to-people ties are a direct result of the Student Refugee Program (SRP), a private sponsorship program and Canadian innovation, led by the World University Service of Canada (WUSC). As the only initiative of its kind in the world, since 1978, the WUSC SRP has supported over 2,000 young refugee students, in partnership with 95 Canadian campuses. I am delighted that South Sudan accounts for the largest network of WUSC SRP alumni globally, and am inspired by their energy in wanting to reinvest their skills and education – whether in business, public service, STEM, the arts, skilled trades, and more – back home here in South Sudan.

Support for human rights, democracy, and peacebuilding

Like in 2011, when we contributed to South Sudan’s independence referendum, Canada is proud to continue our support for peace, human rights, democracy and freedom of expression in South Sudan. Ahead of South Sudan’s first-ever elections in December 2024, Canada is supporting efforts towards an enabling environment for democracy across the country. By working directly with political decision-makers and local civil society alike, Canada is supporting progress both at the structural and grassroots level. This is because we believe everyone has a role to play — especially women and youth, whose meaningful engagement and participation is something we continue to support, including as a cornerstone of Canada’s Feminist Foreign Policy.

Our hope, like the people of South Sudan, is to see this great country peacefully transition and chart its own destiny — one where all people can benefit from prosperity and continue building the nation that so many aspire to. Canada remains a committed partner in this endeavour.

I invite you to connect with the Embassy on social media:

• Facebook: CanadainSouthSudan
• X (Twitter): @CanSouthSudan
• Instagram: CanadaInSouthSudan

Biography

His Excellency Aly-Khan Rajani (BA Hons [Political Science and International Development], University of Toronto, 2002; MPA [National Security], Royal Military College of Canada, 2013) worked for several years with UN-Habitat, CARE International and CARE Canada in numerous global roles in humanitarian emergency coordination and development program management before joining the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) in 2007.

During his time at Headquarters, Ambassador Rajani has been senior adviser on the Afghanistan Task Force and seconded to the Privy Council Office, senior analyst for donor relations and senior adviser to the president of CIDA.

Ambassador Rajani’s assignments overseas have included Cairo and Beirut as head of cooperation and New Delhi as head of advocacy and public affairs and acting head of political and economic affairs for Mumbai. He most recently served as departmental liaison to the Office of the Minister of International Development.