Riek Gai Kok is a

South Sudan South Sudan (), officially the Republic of South Sudan, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered on the north by Sudan; on the east by Ethiopia; on the south by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Kenya; and on the ...

ese politician. He is a

Lou Nuer The Nuer people are a Nilotic ethnic group concentrated in the Greater Upper Nile region of South Sudan. They also live in the Ethiopian region of Gambella. The Nuer speak the Nuer language, which belongs to the Nilotic language family. Th ...

, hailing from Chieng Man-nyang/Diang-nyang Akoba.Small Arms Survey, Geneva.
Small Arms Survey 2010 Gangs, Groups, and Guns
'. Cambridge Univ Pr, 2010. p. 288 A veteran politician, he has been a member of parliament in both

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

and South Sudan.''Al-Ahram''.
Kiir’s delicate game
'' As of 2013, he served as Minister of Health of South Sudan. He was appointed as the governor of

Jonglei state Jonglei State is a States of South Sudan, state of South Sudan with Bor, South Sudan, Bor as its centre of government and the biggest city. Jonglei state comprises nine counties: Bor District (South Sudan), Bor, Akobo County, Akobo, Ayod County, ...

in March 2025.

1990s

As of the early 1990s, Riek Gai Kok served as head of the Relief Association of Southern Sudan, the humanitarian aid wing of the

SPLA-Nasir The SPLA-Nasir was a splinter faction of the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), a rebel group that fought in the Second Sudanese Civil War. Originally created as an attempt by the Nuer people, Nuer tribe to replace SPLA leader John Garang in A ...

.Rone, Jemera.
Civilian Devastation: Abuses by All Parties in the War in Southern Sudan
'. New York: Human Rights Watch, 1994. p. 184Human Rights Watch.
Famine in Sudan, 1998: The Human Rights Causes
'. New York: Human Rights Watch, 1999. p. 80 As of 1997-1998 he served as spokesperson of the South Sudan Independence Movement/Army (SSIM/A).IRIN.
'SUDAN: A future without War?' - IRIN In-Depth on the prospects of peace in Sudan - Who is who
' As the late 1990s he served as ''wali'' (governor) of

Jonglei Jonglei State is a state of South Sudan with Bor as its centre of government and the biggest city. Jonglei state comprises nine counties: Bor, Akobo, Ayod, Uror, Duk, Nyirol, Pigi, Twic East, and Fangak. Jonglei State is the largest s ...

state.

2000s

In 2002 he was named as chairman of the Southern States Coordination Council by

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Omar al-Bashir Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir (born 1 January 1944) is a Sudanese former military officer and politician who served as Head of state of Sudan, Sudan's head of state under various titles from 1989 until 2019, when he was deposed in 2019 Sudanese c ...

. As SSCC chairman, Riek Gai Kok was charged with administering the states of

Southern Sudan Southern Sudan may refer to: * the southern regions of the present-day Republic of Sudan in North Africa * South Sudan South Sudan (), officially the Republic of South Sudan, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered on the nor ...

. The appointment followed the defection of

Riek Machar Riek Machar Teny Dhurgon (born 26 November 1952) is a South Sudanese politician who has served as the vice president of South Sudan on several occasions, most recently as the first vice president, since 2020. A member of the Nuer ethnic group ...

to the rebel side. As of 2002, Riek Gai Kok was also serving as Minister of Animal Resources in the Sudanese government. At the time Riek Gai Kok was a leader of the South Sudan Defence Forces. Towards the end of the

Second Sudanese Civil War The Second Sudanese Civil War was a conflict from 1983 to 2005 between the central Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement, Sudan People's Liberation Army. It was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil Wa ...

he and a group of his followers broke with the SSDF leader

Gordon Kong Gordon Kong Chuol is a former militia commander in South Sudan, who fought for the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) and later for the forces led by Riek Machar during the Second Sudanese Civil War. Independence fighter Gordon Kong Chuol bel ...

. Riek Gai Kok was also a high-ranking member of the National Congress Party.Young, John.
Sudan People's Liberation Army: Disarmament in Jonglei and Its Implications
'. Pretoria: Institute for Security Studies, 2007. p. 4 He was the chairman of the Southern Sector of the NCP. He also served as advisor to the Sudanese president. On July 7, 2011, two days before the independence of South Sudan, Riek Gai Kok and other Southern NCP leaders held a press conference and declared their entry into the

Sudan People's Liberation Movement The Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM; , ''Al-Ḥarakat ash-Shaʿbiyyat liTaḥrīr as-Sūdān'') is a political party in South Sudan. It was initially founded as the political wing of the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA; a key belli ...

Post-Independence

In August 2013 Riek Gai Kok was named Minister of Health in the government of South Sudan. On March 10, 2025 he was appointed as the new governor of Jonglei state, replacing Mahjoub Biel Turuk.Radio Tamazuj.
New Jonglei Governor Riek Gai sworn In
'

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Riek, Gai National Congress Party (Sudan) politicians Sudan People's Liberation Movement politicians Government ministers of South Sudan Members of the National Assembly (Sudan) Members of the National Legislative Assembly (South Sudan) South Sudanese state governors