Keep 100 Girls in School in Juba City Using Meals

Project Summary and Quarter Objectives

Girls in particular and women in general rank lowest in the social strata in South Sudan as a nation and in Juba City in particular. This is the capital city with an ever-increasing population. The setting is such that the country does not have any tangible internal production to sustain service delivery. There are no locally generated national incomes and revenue.  The little revenue from the business industry services meets the needs of the central government and some security efforts. More recently in 2023, oil, the main source of revenue, was damaged and cut off when the Sudan war broke out in Khartoum. Pipes and other support systems of oil refining were vandalized thus ending South Sudan’s only main source of revenue.

The above scenario has left the citizens dependent on the humanitarian efforts of the UN, and other charities. These humanitarian actions are so over-stretched and lack the financial means to address the huge needs of the South Sudanese population. Yet ethnic conflict continues to bedevil the country with insecurity present in both urban and rural settings. This situation has forced the population to seek safety and security in (a) UN Protection of People Camps (POC)- in Juba city, there are 2 POCs; (b) through internal refugee life in Juba city; and (c) squatters in Juba city. These conditions are extreme and dire for everyone but worse for women, especially girls.  In this situation, education has been relegated to an absolute luxury. This is the situation that SSGID is fighting so that the needs of girls are catered to by keeping them in school through the following ways: (a) providing nutritious meals in schools, (b) provision of much-needed counseling and career guidance; (c) provision of one bar of soap in a month; (d) provision of period health towels.

SSGID achievements 16^th May - 15^th August 2024

Faced with the challenge of limited funding, SSGID achieved the following over the last three months:

(a)    Carried out successful identification and verification of needy girls in which we obtained a list of 420 such girls.

(b)    Held talks with the Juba city council authorities and lower-level administration units to provide these girls with emergency care and nutrition.

(c)    Followed up with all the 420 girls to the places where they reside to counsel and give them hope.

(d)    Recruited 4 social workers to provide ongoing counseling to the 420 girls.

(e)    Had the opportunity to air the plight of these girls on FM radio, leading to interactive and feedback sessions with concerned citizens, and the entire public.

Challenge

SSGID is challenged by limited funding otherwise, we would suppose the support, care, protection, and development target of the stated 100 girls in this project. Our appeal is for sustained funding, which comes on time.