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South Sudan’s Gum Arabic Belt

Two Entrepreneurs, One Journey in Resilience

South Sudan

South Sudan sits on one of Africa's largest reserves of gum arabic; the acacia belt stretches across roughly 4.6 million hectares in eight states, though today production is really only active in two, Upper Nile and Northern Bahr el Ghazal. That gap between potential and practice is the space both Precise Enterprise Limited and Nile Organic Limited are working in, from different starting points and, notably, led by very different founders. What connects their stories isn't just gum arabic; it's a shared commitment to building the systems (standards, traceability, buyer trust) that turn a raw resource into a real export sector, with MARKUP II showing up as a consistent partner in that work.

Precise Enterprise Limited

When Precise Enterprise’s Founder, Mr. Sabit Asholi looked into the gum arabic sector globally, he was surprised to find that a significant share of global exports of the product actually originate from South Sudan. That initial realization sparked his interest in the sector, but was served as the foundation was the awareness of the sector’s “potential to contribute meaningfully to socioeconomic growth in South Sudan."

Precise Enterprise has since grown into one of the country's more established gum arabic exporters, sourcing through collection points and warehouses that reach into Renk and Aweil; exactly the two states where South Sudan's production is currently concentrated.

Mr. Asholi is careful not to let that growth read as arrival rather than responsibility: "This shows that we are moving in the right direction, but it also reminds us of the responsibility we have to maintain a reliable supply chain, continue serving our customers to the highest standard, and grow the business in a sustainable way."

Photo Credit: Precise Enterprise Limited

MARKUP II's support showed up across three concrete threads in his account. A benchmarking mission to Chad in October 2025 gave Precise Enterprise and other South Sudanese exporters direct exposure to a more mature gum arabic export system ; cooperative management, quality certification, value addition, that Asholi sees as a model worth adapting locally.

Through MARKUP II's Quality Champions Programme, a coach worked directly with his team on food safety and hygiene practices, with tangible results: staff now more consistently use protective gear, keep processing areas clean, and apply lean principles to cut waste and costs. And at Food Ingredients Paris 2025, pre-event training on marketing and branding helped the team pitch more effectively to international buyers. This trip also led directly to a new supply deal with an international client.

Photo Credit: Precise Enterprise Limited

Asholi's advice to other South Sudanese entrepreneurs considering agribusiness stays focused on the scale of potential: with production active in only two of eight potential states, he sees gum arabic as a way to build "reliable income opportunities" and "strengthen community resilience" well beyond where the sector currently reaches, and invites others to help "establish South Sudan as a global leader in gum arabic exports."

Nile Organic Limited

Agol Kuc's journey with Nile Organic Limited, starts with a conviction she had to prove on her own terms.

Photo Credit: Bwamba Cooperative Union

As a woman founder in what she describes plainly as "a traditionally male-dominated sector," she says credibility wasn't handed to her; it had to be "established through competence, consistency and results." Her case for building Nile Organic rests on a read of untapped potential: South Sudan and the wider African gum belt produce some of the world's finest quality gum arabic, and the real gap isn't the product, it's everything around it "building an organized supply chain, meeting international standards and connecting producers to markets where the product is valued."

MARKUP II's role in that effort has been substantive by Agol’s account. MARKUP II’s work fed directly into South Sudan's National Export and Investment Strategy for the gum arabic sector and supported the National Standards Bureau in drafting a regional standard and code of practice for harvesting, handling, processing, and storage; sector-level support that a single company couldn't build alone. Closer to the ground, MARKUP II provided Nile Organic with specialised gum arabic tapping tools, a small but practical intervention aimed squarely at improving quality and efficiency where harvesting actually happens. And like Precise Enterprise, Nile Organic took part in the Chad benchmarking visit and Food Ingredients Paris, which Agol Kuc credits with building "valuable buyer relationships" with major global gum arabic purchasers.

Photo Credit: Bwamba Cooperative Union

MARKUP II's role in that effort has been substantive by Agol’s account. MARKUP II’s work fed directly into South Sudan's National Export and Investment Strategy for the gum arabic sector and supported the National Standards Bureau in drafting a regional standard and code of practice for harvesting, handling, processing, and storage; sector-level support that a single company couldn't build alone. Closer to the ground, MARKUP II provided Nile Organic with specialised gum arabic tapping tools, a small but practical intervention aimed squarely at improving quality and efficiency where harvesting actually happens. And like Precise Enterprise, Nile Organic took part in the Chad benchmarking visit and Food Ingredients Paris, which Agol Kuc credits with building "valuable buyer relationships" with major global gum arabic purchasers.

Asked about the experience of actually reaching EU and East African buyers, her answer resists any suggestion that demand alone is the requirement: "international buyers are looking for reliability... For an emerging exporter, building that confidence takes time." In closing, Agol sees success as something beyonf her own company; "my ambition goes beyond building one company - it is about demonstrating that a South Sudanese enterprise can connect local production to international markets while creating greater value for the communities within the supply chain."