Government Puts Schools at Heart of Recovery
South Sudan’s education ministry says new classrooms, safe latrines and learning materials top its 2024 budget, reflecting a drive to rebuild schools scarred by conflict.
Undersecretary Kachuol Mabil Piok told reporters the pledge keeps education at the heart of national recovery and offers a tangible dividend of peace.
Rising Enrollment and Literacy Data
Officials say enrollment has climbed in Upper Nile and Jonglei states after temporary classrooms opened with donor support, nudging nationwide literacy rates upward for the first time in five years.
Piok credited community-led school management committees for protecting girls from early marriage and keeping them in class.
UNICEF and Donors Strengthen Support
UNICEF representative Emilie Roy said the agency blends advocacy with technical advice so ministries can uphold every child’s right to quality schooling.
She noted that aligned global and local funding streams provide textbooks, training, and psychosocial services in displacement camps.
Next Steps for Sustainable Education
The ministry plans to roll out a data dashboard tracking attendance, teacher deployment and infrastructure gaps, a move observers say could sharpen accountability.
“Our classrooms must become havens of possibility,” Piok asserted, urging lawmakers to pass the pending Education Bill that would ring-fence at least 15 percent of the national budget.