Leaders must work together to raise living standards, not wage wars

IT was a poignant moment: A visibly struggling Pope Francis, the leader of the Catholic Church and one of the world's most powerful religious leaders, bending over to kiss the feet of two African men responsible for a conflict that has killed some 400,000 people.

The 82-year old Pontiff's unprecedented show of deference to South Sudan's feuding warlords last Thursday during a peace initiative at the Vatican City was a graphic reminder to those in power that they can change the lives of the people they govern. All it takes is will and humility to put others before self.

The war in South Sudan has been going on for more than five years, after tensions between the country's president, Salva Kiir Mayardit, and his former deputy Riek Machar escalated. Their rivalry grew into an ethnically-fuelled conflict that displaced millions from their homes and subjected many to the horrors of war. More than a million fled over the border into Uganda, carrying with them stories of rape, disease and starvation.