USAID launches peace solidarity with South Sudan
By Isaac Vuni
April 4, 2008 (JUBA) — The USAID is in solidarity with the government of southern Sudan because the twenty one years of protracted war left the south devastated with dead toll of over two million and worst destroyed the education institutions and system that had existed in the south, United States of America Consul general, Christ Datta has said.
Consul Datta said the US Administration took the lead in rehabilitating and constructing schools in the war affected areas together with the government of South Sudan because the people of South had to start from zero. And hence building of schools as the key pillar of everything on which the future of South Sudan depends was paramount to building good system of education, he remarks.
Addressing joint press conference on CPA solidarity week in Juba in the ministry of Education, Science and Technology premises, the US Consul General, Christ Datta, says despite all that has been done during the past three years of the CPA, some people think that nothing has been done in southern Sudan, contrary, he said, a lot have been achieved on security, social cohesion, good governance, economic development, and democracy building including building of schools.
Consul Datta revealed that USAID in partnership with the government of South Sudan have constructed 115 primary schools, three secondary schools, and rehabilitated three teacher training institutes. Total of 1,126 teachers were trained and another one thousand teachers trained for interactive radio instruction teaching out of which twelve per cent are female and established over ten thousands radio listening groups.
USAID also awarded 2,500 scholarships and planned additional 3,000 scholarships for female. While in Kauda, Kurmuk and Abyei, 3,753 pupils received vitamin A tablets, 4,436 received de-worming drugs as 200 parents’ teacher association members were trained.
Meanwhile the USAID Director for southern Sudan mission, Allan Reed, stated that they together with GoSS ministry of education have positively worked out education curriculum for the South. Adding that USAID relationship with Juba government started before signing of the CPA and since then partners have done a great improvement in the field of education.
Reed said the US department of technical assistance has assigned four senior advisors, one to GoSS and three are to six states to help in building the ministries capacity on policies development, planning, budgeting, program implementation, monitoring and evaluation. He also lauded the support of other agencies involved in education program for the south.
When asked whether it was appropriate to have South Sudanese children studying under tree during the era of twenty one century and yet the designated agencies for supporting education program in South Sudan registered them as success of their school enrolment campaign, US Consul General, Christ Datta said the most important thing was that the children are learning because there are teachers to teach them. Of course, he says every child should be given the best learning opportunity in a clean environment where there are teachers and text books to help children learn.
10 TECHNICAL SCHOOLS
Responding to question why the government could not built technical school since the last one in South Sudan was built in 1954, the undersecretary in the ministry of Education, Science and Technology, William Ater, stated that it was expensive to construct technical school during the war time. However, he said plans are on the way to construct ten technical schools in each of the ten states of South Sudan by the year 2011 but depending on availability of adequate budget of GoSS ministry of education.
The undersecretary said prior to signing of CPA, there were 400,00 children studying in the liberated area of SPLM/A but after CPA the number has risen to one million two hundred thousands. He further revealed that from next year South Sudan will have its own national examinations set by southern academicians for secondary school than relaying on Khartoum.
Ater say the ministry of education target was to increase technical schools because South Sudan requires much technical knowledge of science and technology than academic knowledge to enable southern take over from costly highered foreign professionals. He said the only two technical schools of Torit and Tonj are in the process of being rehabilitated thereafter the ministry will move to other states for construction of technical schools.
Regarding the three South Sudan public universities relocation to their original places, Mr. Ater said its one of the top priorities of the government of South Sudan and that this year ministry of finance has released some funds to effect relocation to the South.
However, he disclosed that during the year 2006, government of South Sudan had big problems of getting admission for South Sudanese returnees into universities of Juba, Wau and Malakal because one of the government of national unity ministry of higher education in Khartoum issued statements stating that they will not accept imported certificates from foreign countries of Uganda and Kenya where most southern Sudanese got their primary and secondary educations during the twenty one years of war.
Nevertheless, the undersecretary said the government of South Sudan managed to solve the problems which resulted in admitting 750 students mostly from Uganda, Kenya and a few from Ethiopia during the academic year 2006/2007. As for academic year 2007/2008 1,300 students are admitted and additional 1,400 under went through English language test screening and they too got admitted in the three universities of the South.
Undersecretary Ater observed that Juba University has major problems of accommodation because the campus was meant for less than 2,000 students. Therefore he appeals to both parents and students to understand the situation facing Juba University administration which is located within the center of Juba city made it difficult to expand. However, with CPA in progress, the university will soon expand to east of river Nile at Bilinya campus for the purpose of accommodating more students, he assured.
When asked why the UN agencies concern with promoting education in the war torn South Sudan are asking communities to first contribute toward construction of basic schools in their localities, Mrs. Grace Datiro, state minister of education of western Equatoria said GoSS policy towards basic education is free education to all children, however, she said it was appropriate for the community to contribute towards construction of schools because they have greater role to play in molding future of their children. The state minister further said the registration amount of two Sudanese ponds is not fee but to help assist school administration support some of their basic needs for enhancing teaching.
Undersecretary Ater recalled that before the CPA was signed three years ago, there were 16,000 volunteers’ teachers in New Sudan administrative areas who were catered for by the community through digging for teachers while others contributes groundnuts and grain to upkeep teachers in class rooms.
(ST)