South Sudanese hail Indian scholarships for strengthening capacity

The Indian government has been lauded by South Sudanese officials who have attended short and long capacity building courses in India.

Akoi Barac, the Press Secretary in the Office of the Chairperson for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Mangala, said the capacity building courses provided for under the Indian Technical & Economic Cooperation (ITEC) have eased social interaction between nationals from the two countries.

Barac enrolled for training in digital marketing in India, and was among the beneficiaries who spoke during the get -together party of ITEC alumni held on Friday at the Indian Embassy in Juba.

“First of all, I appreciate the government, our road of success is smooth because of the Indian government, now my laundry business is growing very well and we have to add more effort. I request my government to favor India because India helps South Sudan in many ways,” said Barac.

Nelson Morbe, the Deputy Spokesman in the office of James Wani Igga, the Vice President for Economic Cluster who attended training in New Delhi in 2019, said the level of training in India is appealing.

“I was endeared by the level of training, we must leverage on that strategic relation to get more opportunities in the near future, we want that experience, it is a great help offered to the country,” said Morbe.

“We hope India will continue providing that capacity building to the country and to the people of South Sudan, and we also look forward to strengthen that friendship that India and South Sudan enjoy,” he added.

Vishnu Kumar Sharma, the Indian Ambassador to South Sudan, said over 1000 South Sudanese have enrolled under the ITEC program since 2013, adding that this initiative has helped in fostering closer bilateral relations between the two countries.

Sharma said the training program initially disrupted by outbreak of COVID-19 resumed in April 2022.