Rallying Youth Against Digital Flames
Joseph Wani Kute, Director-General for Culture, Youth and Sports in Eastern Equatoria, urged young residents to treat hate speech and disinformation as sparks that can ignite wider conflict.
Speaking at the workshop’s close in Torit, he framed the digital battlefield as pivotal to South Sudan’s broader quest for durable peace.
Government and NGO Partnership in Action
The Support Peace Initiative Development Organization, led by Wodcan Saviour Lazarus, teamed up with the state ministry, KOICA, and UNDP to fund and deliver the training.
Lazarus stressed that collaboration is essential because youth, who form the majority, are often manipulated as instruments of violence.
Inside the Two-Day Torit Workshop
Sessions covered detecting fake news, responding responsibly on social media, and amplifying verified information to calm tensions.
Participants role-played heated online debates, then deconstructed how inflammatory language can escalate into street clashes.
Facilitators linked digital literacy to tangible benefits such as safer marketplaces and improved access to justice.
Sustaining Momentum for Long-Term Peace
Organisers plan follow-up town-hall forums and mentorship schemes so that trainees pass skills to peers across Eastern Equatoria.
Kute believes consistent training, coupled with economic opportunities, will gradually insulate communities from the lure of divisive rhetoric.
Lazarus echoed that view, noting the programme’s design aligns with national peacebuilding priorities set by Juba.