Is Narus safe?
South Sudan · Africa · data updated 2026-09-04
Narus is a city in South Sudan, home to about 212k people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 5,959 of 6,168, with a safety score of 35.5 out of 100 - in the lower part of the ranking, and the numbers below explain why.
- US State Department: Do not travelOfficial travel advisory level 4 of 4 for South Sudan, updated 2026-05-16.
- UK FCDO advises against all travel to this countryOfficial UK government travel advice, updated 2026-08-25.
- Elevated homicide rate13.98 homicides per 100,000 per year (national rate), about 5× the global city median.
- Same-sex activity criminalizedLaw on the books in South Sudan as of 2025 (OWID legal-status series) - enforcement varies, but LGBTQ+ travelers face legal risk.
Deadliest recorded locations nearby
- Kapoeta North County Riwoto235 deaths · 1 event
- Kauto Payam, Kapoeta East County30 deaths · 1 event
- Nadapal border crossing in disputed border territory Ilemi Triangle8 deaths · 1 event
UCDP-recorded organized-violence deaths within 100 km of Narus, 2022-2024, at the locations the source itself names. Conflict deaths, not street crime.
How safe is Narus really?
No published homicide figure exists for Narus itself, so the national rate stands in: South Sudan recorded 14 homicides per 100,000 people in 2012 - roughly 5 times the global city median. The city itself may be safer or more dangerous than its country's average. South Sudan's income inequality is middling (Gini 44.0) - in this dataset inequality predicts city violence better than any other structural factor, so this neither raises nor lowers the picture much.
Narus also carries some conflict exposure: UCDP recorded 273 deaths from organized violence within 100 km across 3 events in 2022-2024 - a factor crime statistics alone would miss. The deadliest recorded locations in that radius were Kapoeta North County Riwoto (235 deaths), Kauto Payam, Kapoeta East County (30 deaths), Nadapal border crossing in disputed border territory Ilemi Triangle (8 deaths).
What the travel advisories say
The US State Department currently rates South Sudan at level 4 of 4 - "Do not travel" (updated 2026-05-16). The UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to this country. Both advisories are country-level: no official source publishes verified neighborhood-level crime guidance for individual cities, which is why this page reports named areas only where an official source names them.
What to watch out for in South Sudan
Terrorism in South Sudan · Political and security situation · If you are in South Sudan · Robbery and assault · Criminal kidnapping and violence against aid workers · Road checkpoints · Armed conflict · Landmines and unexploded weapons · Limited UK government support · Personal ID · Illegal drugs penalties · Using cameras · LGBT+ travellers · Money · +3 more
Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for South Sudan — country-level, not specific to Narus. Read what each one says →
The numbers
- Homicide rate
- 14 /100knational rate, 2012 · ~5× the global city median
- Conflict deaths
- 273within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
- Income inequality
- Gini 44.0country, 2016
- Human development
- HDI 0.388country, 2023
- Income
- $1,010/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
- Population
- 212kurban centre · 30,304/km²
Country context for travelers
- Road deaths
- 36.7 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
- Political stability
- 40/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
- Rule of law
- 23/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
- Corruption perceptions
- 9/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
- Natural-hazard risk
- 8.3/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Women, Peace & Security
- 0.41Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
- Air quality
- 23.7 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
- Safely managed drinking water
- no dataof the population · WHO/UNICEF JMP
- Healthcare capacity
- 0.0 doctors /1khospital beds: no data
- Malaria
- 254 /1k at riskWHO, 2024 · listed for endemic countries only
Natural hazards in South Sudan
- Flood
- 7.7/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Drought
- 3.7/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Earthquake
- 2.7/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe South Sudan as a whole, not Narus specifically.
Same-sex sexual activity is criminalized in South Sudan (as of 2025). This describes the law on the books, not necessarily enforcement practice.
All country-level figures shared by every city in South Sudan; none of them affect the safety score.
How the score works
One fixed, calibrated mix for every city: 40% homicide · 25% peace · 25% equality · 10% HDI. Homicide and conflict deaths are measured outcomes; income inequality carries the structural share because it predicts real city violence far better than national income (which is shown above but scored at zero). Each factor maps to 0-100 against fixed anchors, missing data drops out and is never estimated, and cities with data behind less than half the weighting get “no data” instead of a score. For Narus that gives 35.5/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →
Narus compared with Nimule
| Measure | Narus | Nimule | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety score | 35.5 | 41.5 | −6.0 — better for Nimule |
| Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate | 14 /100k | 14 /100k | ±0.0 /100k |
| Conflict deaths within 100 km | 273 | 29 | +244 — better for Nimule |
Differences are plain arithmetic between the two stored figures — nothing is modelled. Both cities are in South Sudan, so they share every country-level figure and only the city-level ones are listed. Full report for Nimule →
Nearby cities
- Kapoeta 35.5
- Riwoto 35.5
- Imehejek 35.6
- Torit 41.2
- Nimule 41.5
- Gulu, Uganda 56.7
- Lira, Uganda 56.7
- Juba 45.9
See Narus on the interactive map → · Safest cities in Africa → · Full travel briefings →