Jonglei school children demand better from local government

June 17, 2012 (BOR) – School children in South Sudan’s Jonglei State celebrated African World Child Day by accepting the primary school certificates on Saturday at the state’s Ministry of Education.

Speaking at the ceremony, Jonglei Governor Kuol Manyang Juuk, called upon state government officials to bring back their children back to South Sudan rather than educating the abroad.

South Sudanese officials usually send their children to foreign countries due the poor standard, low investment and lack of professional teachers in the world’s newest nation.

The state ministry for education announced that their plan for 2013 will upgrade rural education but cautioned that insecurity in rural areas could be a problem. Over 100,000 people were displaced at the beginning of the year by raids and counter raids between rival groups, disrupting the education for many children.

Jonglei’s children used the occasion of the day of the African child to urge the government to open a school for orphans, end forced marriages and promote gender education in the new South Sudan education syllabus.

Roda Ajak Agoto, student at Bor Girl’s Primary School, urged parents, caregivers, chiefs and the governor of Jonglei State to pay greater attention to education and to preventing the practice of forced and early marriage.

She said that girls need a law that encourages them to go to school.

“We need law that allow boy to protect human right and stop forceful marriage” said Roda.

Dut Malaak Deng, a student at Bor Mixed Primary School called upon young people to go on to further studies in fields such as medicine.

“We need to be faithful generation that accepts God and work in spirit of God” said Deng.

He also added that child abduction, a practice that often occurs alongside cattle raiding in Jonglei, be stopped.

“We are tired of children being abducted in this state and our government is not doing enough to stop this attitude” he concluded.

(ST)