Taban Deng Gai facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Taban Deng Gai
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| Third Vice President of South Sudan | |
| Assumed office 21 February 2020 |
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| President | Salva Kiir Mayardit |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| 2nd First Vice President of South Sudan | |
| In office 23 July 2016 – 21 February 2020 |
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| President | Salva Kiir Mayardit |
| Preceded by | Riek Machar |
| Succeeded by | Riek Machar |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1950 Kerial, Sudan |
| Nationality | South Sudanese |
| Political party | SPLM-IO (Juba faction) |
Taban Deng Gai is an important politician from South Sudan. He is currently one of the Vice Presidents in the country's unity government. He has held this role since February 2020. Before that, he was the First Vice President of South Sudan from July 2016 to February 2020. He also served as a minister for mining.
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Early Life and Political Journey
Taban Deng Gai was born around 1950. His home village was Kerial, which is now in Unity State, South Sudan. He belongs to the Nuer ethnic group. He identifies with the Jikany subgroup of the Nuer.
He is related to another well-known politician, Riek Machar. Taban Deng Gai is Machar's brother-in-law. He is also a cousin to Machar's wife, Angelina Teny.
Roles During the Civil War
During the Second Sudanese Civil War, Taban Deng Gai had several important jobs. He managed a refugee camp called Itang. He also led the relief efforts for the SPLA in Nasir. He was also in charge of supplies for Riek Machar.
When Machar's group, the SPLA-Nasir, separated from the main SPLA, Deng Gai helped them. He was the main contact person between SPLA-Nasir and the Sudanese government.
Becoming a Governor
The SPLA-Nasir group eventually made a deal with the Sudanese government. This allowed them to take part in politics in southern Sudan. Because of this, Taban Deng Gai was chosen as the governor of Unity State. He was governor from 1997 to 1999.
After that, he served as the Deputy Minister of Roads and Bridges. This was from 1999 to 2000. He became governor of Unity State again in September 2005.
Elections and New Roles
In the April 2010 elections, Taban Deng Gai won the vote for governor of Unity State. He received 137,662 votes. His cousin, Angelina Teny, came in second with 63,561 votes. However, some people questioned these results.
Angelina Teny said that Deng Gai used armed groups to scare her supporters. This election caused a disagreement between Deng Gai and Angelina Teny. It also affected his relationship with Riek Machar.
Joining the Rebels and Changing Sides
When the South Sudanese Civil War started, Taban Deng Gai first joined the rebel group. This group was the SPLM-IO, led by Riek Machar. Deng Gai became Machar's second-in-command.
He later became the main person to talk with the South Sudanese government. This was for the SPLM-IO rebels. The government was led by President Salva Kiir Mayardit.
In August 2015, the rebels and the government agreed to share power. Deng Gai was not happy with this deal. He wanted to be the petroleum minister, but he was offered the mining minister role.
He then started working with President Kiir's forces in secret. Even though the rebel army found out, their leaders did not believe it. In April 2016, he left his role as the rebel negotiator. He said he needed to focus on being the mining minister.
Becoming First Vice President
After a big fight in Juba in July 2016, Taban Deng Gai officially joined the government side. He then took Riek Machar's place as the First Vice President. Many rebel fighters followed him. This group became known as the Juba faction of the SPLM/A-IO.
They started fighting alongside the government against Machar's loyalists. Because of this, some other rebels saw Deng Gai as someone who had changed sides.
Current Role and Projects
As part of the agreements to end the civil war, new government positions were created in 2020. Taban Deng Gai was appointed as the "Third Vice President of South Sudan."
In this role, he has been working on important building projects. For example, by 2022, he was in charge of building a new highway. This road will connect South Sudan and Ethiopia.
