South Sudan women are hit hard by poverty – Deputy Minister of Gender
By Bonifacio Taban Kuich
September 6, 2012 (BENTIU) – South Sudan’s Deputy Minister of Gender, Child and Social Welfare Dr. Priscilla Nyayang Joseph is on a tour of ten states of South Sudan assembling a final report following a grant of $4 million from the World Bank through the country’s Multi-Donors Trust Fund to the ministry for the support of women in 2009.
Nyayang was warmly welcomed by a number of women and state government officials when she arrived at Rubkotna airstrip on Tuesday.
Her visit was to witness the projects proposed by women in the ten states since 2010. She said she was impressed that 60% of projects has been implemented to further the Ministry of Gender, Social Welfare’s aims to promote gender equality and equity.
Nyayang says her Ministry is committed to advocate for and protect the rights of all people without any discrimination on the bases of gender, ethnicity, political or religious affiliation.
The minister warned that high levels of poverty South Sudan are a threat to women.
“The statistics of South Sudan show that there is poverty in South Sudan and in that poverty if you unpack it most of the women carry the bigger degree of poverty because most women are mothers they have children and if they don’t get food their children will go without food”, added Nyayang.
She also says it is their task is to “monitor any violation of women, children and persons with disability rights”.
Nyayang said that the $4 million donated in 2010 had been successfully distributed across the ten states of South Sudan.
“Out of ten states 109 women succeeded and we gave them the money, the projects are what the women can do, if you think you can do agriculture you get money for agriculture, if you think you can do tailoring you get money for tailoring, if you think that you can get money for restaurant you can get money for restaurant, for shop you get money for shop”, said Nyayang.
Nyayang hopes that the projects will improve the lives of women in South Sudan.
As the projects come to an end the minister said that she hoped donors would continue funding the projects.
The minister, echoing the theme of this year’s international women’s day, said that “rural women must be empowered to eradicate hunger”.
(ST)