Work on a transitional constitution began on 21 January 2011 with the formation of a technical review committee, empowered by presidential decree, to amend the 2005 Interim Constitution of Southern Sudan. After the January 2011 referendum in favour of secession, the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) and various opposition political parties broadly agreed on the need to adopt a transitional constitution based on the ICOSS and tailored to the enhanced powers and responsibilities of a sovereign state.[1]