Ms Anne O'Mahony:

An important point to make about South Sudan is that it is a country with enormous potential. It has fantastic land which could be utilised in a very productive way and great waterways and water systems, including the Nile river. It has vast quantities of oil - one might say it is sitting on an enormous lake - and the process of exploration is at the very beginning. It has the potential to be a great nation. Indeed, if we could just bang heads together and get people to work to build the country properly, it could be fantastic.

However, as to whether we are optimistic for South Sudan's future, I have to say "No". The conflict is too bitter, ingrained and intractable at this time. Having said that, if there is sufficient international will, support and engagement, there is certainly hope that something can happen. As an organisation, the situation in South Sudan has left us very stretched. We are working with refugees in Ethiopia and Uganda and the internally displaced in South Sudan while continuing to run the longer-term development programmes in areas of South Sudan that are not part of the conflict. We are also dealing with the Syrian crisis, further potential weather problems in Somalia, and we recently went into the Central African Republic. These efforts are putting huge pressure on us as an organisation, as I am sure they are on my fellow delegates. We have an obligation to deliver on our organisational humanitarian mandate and the situation in South Sudan represents a significant challenge for us all.

In the meantime, the problems go on for South Sudan. If this peace deal has a chance of survival it will give people a little hope, but only if all the other instruments go in around it to help with the nation-building process. We were not in a great place last December but we were at least making progress. The outbreak of conflict at the end of the year set the country on a downward spiral which we must work together to address. We are all here today for that reason, to consider how we can work together to check that downward spiral and get South Sudan back on track.