NEW CASH: South Sudan bank notes released

What lies ahead

But as the euphoria dies down, the focus is now on nation-building, and in the case of South Sudan, this means beginning literally from scratch. Right now, that country has a transitional constitution. It has to write a new constitution capturing the aspirations of all the people and one that will shape the politics and governance of the new republic. After that, it will have to focus on developing the infrastructure.

For the new nation, there are lots of challenges that could make the smiles of the South Sudanese disappear and morph into cursing frowns. The infrastructure is poor – very few paved roads, no steady supply of electricity, very few schools and teachers. There is also a huge hungry population to feed despite having plenty of fertile arable land that has not been farmed for decades for fear of detonating land mines planted in the 21 years of war with the North.

Being a land-locked country, South Sudan is looking toward the East Africa Community to grow its economy. Natural resources including gold, diamond, oil, uranium, coal and iron ore lie fallow in South Sudan.

"The country is rich. It is not just the minerals, but also the tourism and the agricultural potential. There are also the rich forests and furthermore, the Nile River passes through the region as it snakes its way to Egypt. If all these are well managed, South Sudan will be the biggest economy in Africa in the next 10 years," Lucas Barasa, a Kenyan journalist who's covered South Sudan since the early days of conflict, told ChinAfrica.

Nonetheless, statistics show that half the population is poor. Half the population is below 18 years and slightly over two-thirds of the estimated 8 million South Sudanese are below the age of 30 and largely illiterate. This presents a grim picture for youth unemployment.

Hope

But it is not all doom and gloom. The people of Juba are aware of this. And having seen what the country has achieved in six years since the peace deal was signed, their optimism can be understood. But as every leader warned it should be tempered with hard work, commitment and hope that a prosperous country is possible.

Optimism abounds. Luk Kuth Dak, a former anchorman with Juba Radio said, "There are hundreds of millions of people across the globe who have been inspired by our independence. We cannot let them down. We cannot let our children down, by leaving them behind with a failed state."

The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon shares this view confident that the new nation has enormous potential.

"With substantial oil reserves, huge amounts of arable land and the Nile flowing through its center, South Sudan could grow into a prosperous, self-sustaining nation capable of providing security, services and employment for its population," said Ban Ki-moon in his commentary published prior to South Sudan's Independence Day.

The sharing of oil revenues, the citizenship of the South Sudanese in the North, the banking and other financial transactions between the South and the North, and air transport between Khartoum and Juba are some of the key issues, which if handled carelessly will cripple the new government.