UNICEF in South Sudan
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is the driving force that helps build a world where the rights of every child are realized. We believe that nurturing and caring for children are the cornerstones of human progress. UNICEF was created with this purpose in mind – to work with others to overcome the obstacles that poverty, violence, disease and discrimination place in a child’s path. We advocate for measures to give children the best start in life, because proper care at the youngest age forms the strongest foundation for a person’s future. UNICEF is mandated by the United Nations General Assembly to advocate for the protection of children's rights, to help meet their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full potential. It is guided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child and strives to establish children's rights as enduring ethical principles and international standards of behaviour towards children. UNICEF provides long-term humanitarian and developmental assistance to children and mothers in 191 countries through country programmes and National Committees.
UNICEF in South Sudan Originally established under a ‘One Country, Two Area Programmes’ approach, the UNICEF Southern Sudan Area Programme became a full-fledged Country Office for South Sudan at the time of independence in July 2011. The South Sudan Country Office will continue to provide humanitarian, recovery, and development assistance to the children and women in South Sudan. Following the creation of the new Republic of South Sudan, UNICEF went through a strategic reflection exercise in 2011 to determine its role and position in the new country. This led to a decision to develop a two-year country programme for 2012–2013, which will provide learning for the next longer-term country programme. UNICEF South Sudan works in close partnership with the government and partners at national, state and community level. Currently, UNICEF has a country office based in Juba with three zonal offices in Juba, Malakal and Wau, and smaller offices in each of the remaining 7 states. UNICEF’s overall goal is to support the Republic of South Sudan in realizing the rights of all South Sudanese children’s right to survival, development, protection and participation, and the creation of an enabling environment to ensure strengthened accountabilities for children with an equity approach. The current 2012–2013 Country Programme addresses four sectoral areas – Health and Nutrition, Basic Education & Gender Equality, Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH) Child Protection and Advocacy supported by cross sectoral programmes – Policy Advocacy & Social Protection, Communication, Monitoring and Analysis (ACMA). Our work in South Sudan is guided by four key building blocks:
UNICEF’s main partners in South Sudan include the Government, UN agencies, bilateral agencies, NGOs, civil society, the media, the private sector and communities. UNICEF brings a global influence and reach, technical expertise and financial resources to provide the necessary support to its partners.
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