Government launches 58 mln USD project to retain children in school
By Denis Ejulu
The South Sudan government on Wednesday launched a four-year project, aimed to expand access to quality, inclusive education and improve learning outcomes for children, especially girls and marginalized groups.
The project funded to a tune of 58 million U.S dollars from the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), will be implemented by the Ministry of General Education and Instruction (MoGEI), in partnership with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), said a statement issued in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.
Other implementing partners include Save the Children International, Norwegian Refugee Council and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Kuyok Abol Kuyok, minister of general education and instruction said that the funding will provide life-saving educational opportunities for hundreds of thousands of crisis-affected girls and boys across the country, calling on global leaders to scale up support to sustain this momentum.
“The government of South Sudan is fully committed to ensuring that all children can obtain a quality education,” Kuyok said.
The project which harmonizes three key GPE funding streams such as the system transformation grant (STG), girls’ education accelerator (GEA) and system capacity grant (SCG) under one integrated, government-led program comes at a critical time when more than 2.8 million school-age children are currently out of school.
The statement disclosed that the project will directly benefit over 300,000 learners and reach an additional 600,000 indirectly across 20 counties, including some of the most affected areas such as Jonglei, Lakes, and the Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA).
It noted that 250,000 children, half of them girls, will get support through the system transformation grant, including 3,000 children with disabilities and 1,120 from pastoralist communities, including 7,300 teachers.
In addition, it revealed that 33,000 girls, 2,000 children with disabilities, 1,650 teachers, and 29,500 boys will benefit from special programs like accelerated learning and sexuality education under the girls’ education accelerator program.
Christopher Nyamandi, country director for Save the Children noted that this funding will enable them to reach the most excluded children, ensuring safe, inclusive access to quality education, even in the face of climate shocks and conflict.
“This is an investment in children’s futures and South Sudan’s peace and prosperity,” Nyamandi said.
Obia Achieng, deputy representative of UNICEF said that boys and especially girls in South Sudan have been shortchanged for too long, with no clear path to education, adding that UNICEF is excited to partner with GPE and other stakeholders to realize this powerful change.
