Japanese support creates further opportunities for girls' education
Lainya, 8 May 2009 – Ms. Yoshiko Kijima, Director of the Humanitarian Assistance Division of the Government of Japan saw first hand the impact of Japan’s support to education in Southern Sudan during a visit to Lainya Primary School in Eastern Equatoria State this month. The school is one of 20 constructed through a partnership between the Government of Southern Sudan, the Government of Japan and UNICEF in support of the “Go to School” Initiative which since 2006 has resulted in a surge in enrollment from an estimate of 343,000 prior to 2005 to a current level of 1.6 million children. Japan contributed US$8.6 million in 2008 through UNICEF to a Child-Friendly Schools Project led by the Government of Southern Sudan. The initiative strives to ensure that schools have adequate classrooms, materials, trained teachers and water and sanitation facilities to strengthen the quality of education being delivered. The funds from Japan have enabled 20 permanent schools to be constructed and 19 others to be repaired and brought back into use as well as providing water in schools and providing 350,000 sets of textbooks, benefiting 750,000 schoolchildren “Education for the current generation will enable the children of Southern Sudan to better contribute to a bright future of Sudan,” said Ms. Kijima as she toured the school. “I have seen the reports – but seeing is believing, and I am very positive about the progress being made.”“I have seen the reports – but seeing is believing, and I am very positive about the progress being made,” said Ms Kijima who chatted with pupils at Lainya Primary School and encouraged them to make effective use of the support being provided. The lack of appropriate school structures and separate sanitation facilities has been identified as a major factor that keeps some children especially girls out of school. “The support of the Government and people of Japan to education in Southern Sudan is a strong gesture of their commitment to ensure a better future for children here,” noted Dr. Sibeso Luswata, Chief of Education in UNICEF’s Southern Sudan Area Programme. “Education – particularly that of girls – is the single most important investment that Southern Sudan can make in its future” she added. In Southern Sudan the long years of civil war – that came to and with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005 – deprived many children of the opportunity to grow to their full potential. For its part, UNICEF has prioritized education as a way of enabling children to develop the talents and skills that can tackle endemic poverty and suffering affecting Southern Sudan. “This school is so far the best of the seven schools that have permanent structures in Lainya,” said Samuel Suba, the Lainya County Commissioner. “Enrollment rates have more than doubled due to the improved learning environment that these new schools have created.” Despite the progress, there are still many unmet needs in the education sector. Gender disparity is a major concern. A study commissioned by UNICEF in 2008 on the cultural barriers to education found that girls are significantly under-represented in education. Enrolment figures for girls are low, as are retention, performance and transition rates to secondary school. The study also noted that girls struggle against unfavorable and discriminatory practices at home, in the community and at school. “For every one of the estimated 1.6 million children at school in Southern Sudan today, there is at least one other who is not – and the great majority of those who remain out of school are girls,” said Dr. Luswata. “That is the underlying challenge upon which we and our partners such as the Government of Japan have to maintain a clear focus.” Since 2007, the Government of Japan has contributed US$14 million towards UNICEF's programmes for womem and children in Southern Sudan. External links open in a new window and take you to a non-UNICEF web site.
How Japan is supporting maternal health programmes in Southern Sudan Read about another partnership between the Government of Southern Sudan, the Government of Japan and UNICEF saving the lives of pregnant women. South Sudan's bike ambulance lifeline (BBC) |
