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Education and Child Protection Needs
Assessments in Greater Pibor
Administrative Area (GPAA), South
Sudan
Final Report
January 2016
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This report presents the results of an education in emergency and child protection in emergency needs
assessment, conducted in Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA also referred to as Boma State).
The GPAA counties covered by this assessment are Pibor, Vereteth, Likaungole and Gumuruk
Counties.
The identified gaps will enable Plan International to design an education in emergency intervention,
with strong components of child protection, in South Sudan.
The needs assessment utilized a research design of a mix-method of data collection procedures. These
included a desk review of relevant needs assessment documents in the education sector, Key Informant
Interviews (KII) with relevant government officials, implementing partners and funding agencies in
South Sudan. Focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews were also conducted with
parents and teachers as well as different age groups of in and out school boys, girls including children
formerly associated with armed forces and groups.
The results of the needs assessment indicate there is an enabling policy environment in the country for
partner engagement in education in emergency sector. Irrespective of the enabling environment there
are currently major education service, as well as skills and competency gaps, in the workforce capacity
in GPAA. Of particular relevance to education, our analysis of both qualitative and quantitative data
reveals acute skill gaps in the number of teaching staff at various levels of training.
In the GPAA area, before 2014 there were no functioning schools, since then UNICEF has made
significant gains over through the opening of 20 government primary schools1 This effort is expected
to continue into 2016 and beyond. Despite these efforts only reach a fraction of the needs are being
met and many children have missed out on the opportunity to obtain a primary education and are now
over the official primary school age.
The results of the assessment reveal two major education gaps in GPAA:
- Alternative Education Systems: There are only four Alternative Education System
(Alternative Learning Programmes - ALP) in entire GPAA, and three of these (3 in Pibor
County and 1 in Likaungole County) and are being funded until the end of April 2016. These
alone are not adequate to address the growing demand or to ensure that alarming number of
adolescents, who have missed some or all of their primary education have the opportunity to
complete their primary education. Generally gender balance lacked at all levels of education,
both in the enrolled learners and the teaching staff. The results also show scarcity of teaching
and learning materials to sustain a learning cycle in the majority of learning spaces.
1 Based upon feedback from meeting with Plan International and UNICEF Education and Child Protection staff in Juba,
South Sudan
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- Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD): There were three ECCD centres run by
local NGO ADCORD, but these have now been closed down and there are no such services
available for children aged 0-5 and their parents in GPAA.
Based on the results of the assessment, it is clear that Plan International programming should be
prioritize, at least for now, ECCD and AES interventions with an inclination towards child protection,
psychosocial support and gender equality. Though secondary schooling shortages requiring
intervention were found in all areas, the immediate need and most effective means of educating the
1,755 recently demobilized children and adolescents from the South Sudan Democratic Army Cobra
Faction, is to engage them in ALPs.
Based on the results of the assessment, it is recommended that, Plan International, educational
institutions, humanitarian partners and other stakeholders in the education in emergency sector should
explore intervention strategies y focused on bridging the gap between acute emergency and
development interventions. While some education and child protection needs are being addressed, the
projects supporting children’s education and protection are in cycles of 3-6 months. These short cycles
have disrupted the quality implementation of ALP which requires 9 months to complete one cycle.
Further, these short grants do not provide job security for teachers, this contributes to the low
motivation and high turnover of teachers.
1.1 THE STATE OF EDUCATION AND CHILD PROTECTION IN SOUTH SUDAN
South Sudan has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world, only an estimated 27% of the population
is literate. Due to almost forty years of conflict, at least two million lives have been lost, four million
people displaced, basic infrastructure was destroyed, and two generations missed out on education.
Fifty two percent (52%) of the population is under the age of 18, the majority of whom have been
denied access to basic services; including education opportunities. The overall primary school net
enrolment rate (NER) in South Sudan is 42%, meaning around 2 in every 5 children of the official
primary age (6-13) are enrolled in primary school. Girls’ NER is 12% less than that for male pupils.
Many children in rural areas are still studying under trees, in the open or in cattle sheds. Most children
often have to walk a minimum of 2.7 km (average of 1 hour) to school, this combined with high levels
of insecurity prevent many parents from sending their younger children especially girls to school. There
is very poor provision of schools and many of these schools have few facilities, poorly qualified
teachers and virtually no books. Attendance at these schools is very low. Most parents are keen for
their boys to have education but it is not considered so important for girls, due to the lack of community
awareness and cultural practices of early/child marriage.
The education situation in GPAA has been aggravated by a history of interethnic fighting and rebellion.
The situation has been aggravated by the on-going insecurity caused by the recent conflict that broke
out in December 2013 between the government and the opposition forces. This has resulted in the
destruction of most school infrastructure destroyed and much of what is left is occupied by IDPs and
or armed groups. Violence is widespread and human rights violations and abuses are commonplace.
Though the GPAA area somewhat stabilized since the signing of the agreement between David
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Yau Yau and the Government , the ongoing hostilities between the Government and the Opposition,
despite the signing of the IGAD sponsored Peace agreement, are impacting on GPAA which remains
a very fragile area in South Sudan.
The Government and the Opposition Forces have signed a commitment to stop and end grave violations
against children including the recruitment of children into armed groups. Irrespective of these
agreements grave violations of children’s rights continue to be reported through the Monitoring and
Reporting Mechanism (MRM), including killing, maiming, abduction, sexual violence and
recruitment.
Since the start of the current conflict (2013), over 16,000 children, mainly boys, have been reported to
been recruited/ associated, with armed forces/groups. These children require support to be reintegrated
into civilian life and to prevent their further recruitment. For girls, the conflict has further heightened
the risk of sexual violence. Thousands of children have become separated from their families and an
estimated 500,000 girls and boys are in need of psychosocial support.
Following the signing of the new peace agreement which requires all armed actors to release all
children, UNICEF and the National Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Commission are
leading the finalization of a strategy to respond to the possible releases, together with partners from the
Child Protection Sub-Cluster.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST), in effort to combat illiteracy, has set
an ambitious target to achieve Education for All (EFA) by 2022. One of the MoEST strategies is to
assist student to catch up is through the implementation of Alternative Education Systems (AES).
Most of the youth in South Sudan are past their basic entry level into regular school. Some are illiterate
and have grown beyond the traditional school entry age level. This necessitated the need for AES which
allows for flexible entry and exit points of both children and adults. AES consists of six programmes
which are Accelerated Learning programme (ALP), Community Girls Schools (CGS), Basic Adult
Literacy Programme (BALP), Intensive English Course Programme (IEC), Pastoralist Education
Programme (PEP) and other programmes. In order to increase the teaching fraternity, MoEST has an
in-service and pre-service programmes conducted through Teacher Training Institutes (TTI) and
Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET). There exists regular Early Learning
Development Education (ECCD), primary schools, secondary schools and universities as a channel of
education and training.
1.2 GREATER PIBOR ADMINISTRATIVE AREA
Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA) is made up 7 Counties: Pibor central, Likuangole, Pochalla
North, Pochalla South, Boma, Vereteth and Gumuruk. GPAA has experienced a fragile peace since
2014 when the Government of South Sudan and the SSDA/M Cobra Faction agreed a ceasefire putting
an end to a four year Murle-lead rebellion and carved out counties within Jonglei State to create the
semi-autonomous GPAA. However, on 11 January 2016, the leader of the SSDA/M Cobra Faction,
General David Yau Yau, left GPAA, under immense pressure from the central government, to take a
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position Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) in Juba and subsequently announced the
dissolution of his former party. This comes in conjunction with the GoSS's launch of a new 28 state
configuration, which includes dissolving the GPAA to form a new State called Boma State and the
new GPAA administration have allegedly been dismissed. This has had immediate repercussions on
the security situation in GPAA which has witnessed increasing tensions, including several incidents of
shooting during the month of January. The general situation in GPAA to date remains extremely
volatile and fragile as the transition of political power and administration is taking place.
Exact population figures are not available for most parts of South Sudan. The last census was in 2008.
The following population data, for each of the assessment locations, disaggregated by gender, has been
taken from the 2015 estimate. This has been built upon the previous 2008 census, with a 34% increase
due to undercounting, with a subsequent projection for 2015. Disaggregation by age and gender has
been using a formula extracted from 2013 nationwide South Sudan population data.
Pibor Vereteth Likuangole Gumuruk Total
Age range
Percentage Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female
0-14 46,16% 17.058
16.544
2.755
2.672
17.378
16.854
12.237
11.868
97.366
15-24 19,65% 7.262
7.043
1.173
1.138
7.399
7.175
5.210
5.053
41.452
25-54 29% 10.708
10.385
1.730
1.677
10.909
10.580
7.682
7.450
61.122
55-64 3,08% 1.137
1.103
184
178
1.159
1.124
816
791
6.493
65+ 2,13% 786
762
127
123
801
777
564
547
4.487
Total 100% 36.952
35.838
5.969
5.789
37.646
36.510
26.508
25.708
210.920
Education Agencies/NGOs active: There are two UNICEF partners currently implementing education
projects in GPAA, Community Aid for Development (CAD) and Nile Hope. Intersos, IOM, local NGO
ADCORD have previously supported education projects. Intersos still currently operates a
´humanitarian hub´ with office space, wifi and accommodation for partners. Plan International and Nile
Hope also have hubs.
2. NEEDS ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY
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The main objective of the assessment was to identify the needs of local communities in Greater Pibor
Administrative Area for children to access quality education in a safe environment. It also took into
account the views of teachers and local education authorities.
The Education and Child Protection needs assessment was carried out in the Greater Pibor
Administrative Area, namely in Pibor, Vereteth, Gumuruk and Likaungole counties where PI currently
has WASH, child protection, nutrition and food distribution programmes. Through these interventions,
PI is well recognized, has built trust with the communities, and has a positive working relationship
with the local authorities, all of which contributed to ensuring the communities were comfortable and
open to participate in the needs assessment. The assessment team was led by PI Spain´s Disaster Risk
Management Officer, who spent 10 days in Pibor supporting the team with data collection and
undertaking stakeholder meetings, and was composed of 2 interviewers (1 male and 1 female) from the
PI Pibor Field team, Pl Pibor and Akobo Field Coordinator, and PI´s Education Programme Manager
and Monitoring and Evaluation Officers based in Juba. PI EiE and CPiE specialists and the PI Spain
Programme Director provided technical support and guidance.
The assessment was comprised focus groups discussions (FDG), semi-structured interviews (SSI) and
key informant interviews (KFI) as data collection methods, as well as verification of available
secondary data. KIIs were held with national, state level and local education authorities. The FGDs
were held with children (2 focus groups with 20 participants), adolescents (4 focus groups 24
participants), former CAFAAG (1 focus group 8 participants), primary and ALP teachers (1 focus
group with 5 participants), and parents (2 focus groups, 14 participants). Semi-structured interviews
were held with teachers, school managers, and adolescent girls and one former CAFAAG.
Secondary data verified by PI included: national education policies and statistics, Education Cluster
and Child Protection sub-Cluster documents, humanitarian situation updates from OCHA, ECHO,
UNICEF, UNHCR, IOM and assessment and evaluation reports developed by other International and
National NGOs in the area of education and child protection.
3. FINDINGS
3.1 Availability of Schools in Pibor County, Gumuruk County, Likaungole County and
Vereteth County, GPAA:
ECCD: There are no Early Childhood Care and Development (pre-primary schools) in GPAA. During
the first half of 2015, there were 3 centres being run by local NGO ADCORD with Common
Humanitarian Fund (CHF) funding, but the funding has run out and these have since closed. The below
chart shows that Pibor is among the 4 out of 14 counties in Jonglei state with no ECCD centres.
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*Extracted from South Sudan Education Information Management System (SSEMIS), 2015 Report, Education in Conflict,
Greater Upper Nile Region (UNICEF, Altai Consulting)
Primary: According to UNICEF, in 2014 there was extremely low access and enrolment figures for
GPAA, including less than two per cent of schools functioning, and lack of teachers. During 2015, the
core component of the UNICEF response for GPAA in 2015 was to work closely with government,
I/NGOs and other partners in reopening primary schools. The graph below shows that as a result, in
2015, there were 28 primary schools in Pibor. Within Pibor Town where there is high population and
to respond to this UNICEF plan to support the State Ministry of Education in opening 6 new additional
schools starting from lower classes to combat overcrowding. This will target access of education to
2,000 children within the first quarter of 2016.
*Extracted from South Sudan Education Information Management System (SSEMIS), 2015 Report, Education in Conflict,
Greater Upper Nile Region (UNICEF, Altai Consulting)
The table below, shared by UNICEF, shows the availability of primary schools in the three of the four
specific assessment locations, Pibor, Likaungole and Gumurk. There is a school structure in Vereteth,
but this requires maintenance and there are currently no classes.
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Gumuruk Six schools and four TLSs are functioning with 2,040 children enrolled so far (22
per cent girls, 20 per cent released boys). No ALP
Pibor Two schools are now operating with two others vacated and being rehabilitated
to prepare for students. Pibor Boys School now has 668 boys enrolled, of which 169
are released children. A further 250 girls attend the newly reopened Pibor Girls school.
An additional 768 students are enrolled in three Accelerated Learning Programmes
(ALPs) which are is currently being funded until April 2016
Lekuangole
The school has been vacated and 515 students (20 per cent girls) are enrolled. The
Lekuangole ALP centre has opened for 167 children and adolescents (5 per cent girls)
which is currently being funded until April 2016
Labarab
A TLS has been established and 435 children enrolled (274 girls), including for the
released children. No ALP
*Table provided by UNICEF, January 2016
Secondary: There is one secondary school in Pibor centre, and this is currently inhabited with IDPs
and thus is not operational. The issue of transition from Primary 8 and ALP 4 (both which culminate
in the National Primary Leavers Exam (PLE)) into secondary schools or vocational training centres is
a major challenge in Pibor. There are no formal, accredited vocational training centres in GPAA.
AES: There are currently 4 AES centres in GPAA. The table below shows Pibor falls in the lowest 5
out of 14 counties in Jonglei State for AES services. As the above table shows, these are being run with
UNICEF funds through local NGO Nile Hope in Pibor Centre (3) and Likaungole (1). UNICEF
specified during a meeting with Plan International that these four ALP centres, are set to be funded
until April 2016, and in the case of continuation, will only be with short term funding (3-6 month
cycles). As is reported below, the stopping and starting of the ALP classes due to these funding cycles
have caused significant disruption to the learners and teachers.
*Extracted from South Sudan Education Information Management System (SSEMIS), 2015 Report, Education in Conflict,
Greater Upper Nile Region (UNICEF, Altai Consulting)
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3.2 Access to Schools
As the table shows above, there are currently 3,473 learners enrolled in primary schools in four
assessment locations in GPAA (Gumuruk, Pibor, Likaungole and Vereteth). This includes 591 girls
(22%) and 2,882 boys (78%). There are 935 children enrolled in ALP in Pibor Centre and Likaungole.
Using the population figures in section 1, it can be estimated that the percentage of primary school age
children attending school in the assessment locations are as follows:
County % primary school-age boys in school % primary school-age girls in school
Pibor 3.5% 1.4%
Likaungole 2.1% 0.6%
Gumuruk 11.8% 3.6%
Vereteth 0% 0%
As the table shows above, there are currently 3,473 learners enrolled in primary schools in four
assessment locations in GPAA (Gumuruk, Pibor, Likaungole and Vereteth). This includes 591 girls
(22%) and 2,882 boys (78%). There are 935 children enrolled in ALP in Pibor Centre and Likaungole
During the Focus Group Discussions
(FGDs) it was reported by adolescent boys
that the main reasons they cannot access
school are due to scarcity of schools, high
teacher absenteeism’s (which was quoted to
be discouraging and prompts them to stay at
home), lack of scholastic materials which
their parents cannot afford and general
community perceptions that education is
not important. Despite views on community
education perceptions, eight out of ten boys
interviewed stated that within their
households, their parents are supportive of
their school attendance. Irregular
attendance was frequently stated for some as a result of competing duties tending to cattle. Several
boys expressed that their peers had chosen to join armed groups as a way to earn a small income, as an
alternative to education. It was unanimously stated in all focus groups by adolescent girls, boys and
their parents (both male and female) that girls do not usually attend school due to cultural practices of
early marriage. It was specified that education can ´spoil´ a girl and reduce her chances of a good
marriage as well as concerns of girls being outside of the home where they can be supervised,
particularly on the journey to and from school.
Pibor Boys School, Pibor Centre, GPAA
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Adolescent girls stated that they do not have any decision making power over whether they go to
school, and usually early marriage will prevent them from being able to attend. Ten percent ( 10%)
adolescent girls interviewed were actually attending school, but they all stated they had to balance
study with household chores (collecting water, collecting wood, cooking, washing etc.), caring for
children and/or elderly household members and struggled to keep up with homework. Forty percent
(40%) of them stated their parents were able to provide them with scholastic materials. Similarly to
their male counterparts, teacher absenteeism was reported to be a factor hindering their attendance.
They reported that they walk a long way to school, which is tiring combined with household and/or
childcare duties and frequently find no teacher in the classroom. Other barriers accessing education
include lack of uniforms, other scholastic materials such as text books and exercise books and when
prompted during the interview stated lack of menstrual hygiene products made frequent school
attendance difficult.
During the FGD with the recently demobilised children and youth (ages from 14 – 23 years old – the
average age interviewed was 15 who were attending an ALP programme, expressed immense
disappointment that the classes kept stopping as teachers were not getting paid so did not turn up. In a
one-on-one interview conducted at the ALP centre, the learner stated that some of his peers have re-
joined armed groups as a result of this and that although he does not want to fight again if he has
nothing to do he might not have a choice. FGDs held with primary school age girls and boys mentioned
similar obstacles to education such as lack of books and other scholastic materials. Few of the boys
mentioned they were unable to enroll due to registration fees that were requested at primary school.
Both boys and girls quoted that they prefer to stay and play with other children close to their homes.
Mothers stated that they are unable to support their daughters with school materials and the small
amount of money they earn from selling items such as wood in the market is given straight to their
husbands. During the focus groups with mothers, when asked, they all said that the main decision
makers in their communities are chiefs, husbands, uncles and elderly community members.
CASE STUDY: FEMALE ALP LEARNERS IN PIBOR
Only four girls are enrolled in the ALP centre in Pibor Boys School and are together in a class of 46
learners and were interviewed by Plan
International in pairs. A male translator from the
community was present for the interviews.
General feedback was positive. Two of the
learners are mothers. One of the learners, aged
24, is a mother of three children and another
aged 19 has one child. The former stated that her
husband never attended school, but he is
supportive of her education and she is able to
balance her study with childcare and household
chores. All four learners commented that major
challenges exist regarding girls´ access to
education in their community. They described
Focus group with two female ALP students in Pibor Boys School, there were no benches in this classroom
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how parents often do not allow girls to go to school as they have work to do at home and there is a
common perception that education ´spoils´ girls and reduces their marriage prospects. They noted that
their parents´ support to their education is rare. The learners stated they found ALP a positive
experience as they are able to study with their age-mates and not younger primary school children,
which they described as too noisy and too young. The girls expressed that they do not have any female
teachers and there is an overwhelming majority of male learners in the class, and commented they had
a good relationship with the boys and described them as ´like brothers´. All four girls expressed that
they find maths the most difficult subject. On transition, two of the girls stated they would like to go
to secondary school after they graduate from level four and noted that presently the secondary school
is not functioning (the secondary school in Pibor Centre is currently inhabited with IDPs). On ALP
centres facilities, they are on the whole satisfied with the centres, commenting the latrines are clean
but there is a shortage of handwashing soap and would also like support with sanitary products. As
with all learners interviewed, they noted a lack of textbooks. The girls did not report any having any
difficulties travelling to and from the centre and no cases of harassment were reported during these
journeys or in the centre. Journey times were reported to be between 15 and 30 minutes on foot for all
four girls.
3.3 Quality of Education
All children, adolescents, parents and teachers interviewed expressed that they do not have sufficient
scholastic materials including text books, exercise books, teaching manuals and pens. The local
education authorities told Plan that they do not have budget to cover the printing of text books, teaching
manuals. It was reported by NGOs, focus group participants and local authorities that UNICEF and
partners have printed such materials, but distributions have not reached all learners and are not
sufficient to last through the school year. Not only does this major lack of materials impact the quality
of learning but in many cases was reported as a main reason for learners to drop out of or not go to
school.
The Local Education Authorities in GPAA expressed that the main challenges to ensuring quality
education are lack of teachers, budget to pay teacher top-up incentives and provision of stationary.
There were no specific comment on the standard of teaching, rather the high absenteeism of teacher
and administration of corporal punishment (see below).On extra-curricular and recreational activities,
It was expressed by former CAAFAG attending ALP that they enjoy volleyball and football but
currently do not have any balls and they would like to do some agricultural activities and learn how to
drive. Primary school boys and girls also echoed this saying they wish they had balls so they could
play football after classes.
3.4 Facilities available in school
Plan International with funding from the Netherlands Government, alongside nutrition and child
protection interventions, has rehabilitated WASH facilities in Kondakot Primary school in Pibor and
UNICEF and partners have also contributed to WASH construction and rehabilitation in the other
schools. However, observations show there is need for frequent cleaning as well as small repairs.
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Adolescent boys mentioned that there was no drinking water available and a lack of furniture. On
observation at Pibor Boys School, only one of the two classes used for ALP in the afternoons had
benches and both had chalkboards.
Classroom at Pibor Boys School where ALP classes take place
3.5 Need for Temporary Structures
There are no ECCD centres in any of the locations and TLS are required. The existing primary schools
in Gumuruk, Pibor and Likaugole have a combination of permanent and semi-permanent (TLS)
classrooms, although, especially in Pibor centre, there are reports of overcrowding in the class. As
previously mentioned, UNICEF plans to support the construction of six primary schools in Pibor centre
in 2016.
There is currently no operational primary school in the county of Vereteth but there is a school structure
that requires maintenance.
Teachers and other education personnel
Availability: The below table shows thenumber of teachers per school type and county in 2015 in
Joneglei State. It demonstrates that in Pibor there are 21 male AES teachers (based upon findings of
this assessment these are all ALP) and no female AES teachers. It is the only county in Jonglei (under
the previous state configuration) with no ECCD teachers. It has the third lowest number of primary
teachers after Pochalla and Duk, out of which 6% are female. There currently no secondary school
teachers in GPAA.
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*Extracted from South Sudan Education Information Management System (SSEMIS), 2015 Report, Education in Conflict,
Greater Upper Nile Region (UNICEF, Altai Consulting)
Salaries: As previously stated, all children and adolescents focus group participants reported high
teacher absenteeism. When the three ALP teachers interviewed were asked about their attendance, they
stated that they had stopped teaching as were not receiving any salary, however one also reported that
when they have community and/or family issues to deal with they are unable to come to class. This has
been due to gaps in project funding to support the ALP centre in Pibor Boys School, which was opened
only one year ago in 2015. Further changes in government administration and tense political situation
regarding the alleged disbandment of Greater Pibor Administrative Area, has been reported by PI
GPAA field staff and other actors on the ground to create much uncertainty regarding payment of
salaries.
Corporal punishment: Feedback from the FGD held with children and youth formerly associated with
the South Sudan Democratic Army (SSDA) Cobra Faction reported that the teachers beat them with a
stick when they do something wrong and when asked what they think about this they responded that
they think this punishment is fair and they are being punished ‘in the right way’. When ALP teachers
were interviewed at the ALP centre in Pibor Boys schools, on the topic of punishment, one teacher
commented that when learners do not behave he cannot use the cane as it is not allowed nowadays
‘which is a shame as without the cane children do not behave´. When asked they stated that the forms
of punishment that are used include sending children home, bringing the parents into school or making
them pick litter from the grass.
On training, two primary school teachers reported receiving life skills, gender and psychosocial support
training from Windle Trust and one teacher reported he had not received any training outside
primary/ALP curriculum. When asked what training they would like to receive interest was expressed
in counselling, peacebuilding, English and classroom management. The teachers who received
psychosocial support training reported that they do not conduct any psychosocial support activities in
the classroom as they are unsure how to conduct them in practice. The Parent Teacher Association
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(PTA) was reported to be active and one teacher stated they have ‘more power than the teachers’. Their
roles were identified as giving advice to learners and planning for school development.
During consultation in January, teachers reported that have some concerns going back to school when
the term starts due to the current political insecurity as growing tensions arising between what was the
3.6 County level Education Staff Coordination and Community Support groups
During the needs assessment, Plan International held a meeting with Pibor County Education
Authorities, based in Pibor Centre. Due to security issues arising from current political tensions, Plan
were unable to travel to Vereteth, Likuangole and Gumuruk to conduct similar meetings in these
locations.
Pibor County Education Authorities: Plan International held a meeting with Pibor County Education
Authorities to understand in more detail their roles and responsibilities as well as gathering more
information pertaining to education and child protection. The Pibor County Education department is
responsible for four payams: Gogothin (Pibor centre), Akilo, Manyedekah, and Lokilich. There are
four staff in the department and the structure was described as follows:
Up until December 2015, the Country Education Directors in GPAA reported to the State Ministry of
Education in Pibor Centre. However, as mentioned in the context section of this report, the GPAA
administration was dismissed with the new 28 state configuration and the new state administration will
sit in Boma, where the newly formed ´Boma State´ authorities which include the former counties of
GPAA will sit. It was reported there are 57 trained teachers in Pibor County, 3 women and 54 men.
Out of these teachers, 13 are not working. The rest are working and receive a government salary. It
was reported that there are functioning PTAs in all primary schools in Pibor County and that they are
composed of 25% women. Their roles are to monitor schools, and specifically to report teacher
absence. They also conduct some community mobilisation through speaking to village leaders about
the importance of education. It was reported that there are no other CBOs in Pibor County.
PIBOR COUNTY EDUCATION DIRECTOR
PIBOR COUNTY EDUCATION DEPUTY
DIRECTOR
PIBOR COUNTY EDUCATION INSPECTOR
PIBOR COUNTY EDUCATION SUPERVISOR
Receives information from supervisor,
verifies then passes up to Deputy Director
Conducts monitoring in schools and
channels information to the Inspector
Reports to County Director
Until December 2015 reported to GPAA
MoE. This has now been dissolved and a
new administration in Boma is reportedly
being formed.
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There is an Education Inspector and Supervisor responsible for monitoring and reporting all education
services in the county (currently primary and ALP). Unlike other States, there is currently no separate
system in place to monitor AES. In terms of access, the County Education staff have a vehicle which
they can use to access schools for monitoring purposes during the dry season, but do not have transport
suitable for travelling during the rainy season. The office is located inside a building constructed of
local materials. The authorities do not have desktop computers or laptops nor did there appear to be
any electricity outlets or generator.
The main challenges currently faced by the Education Authorities is a lack of teachers, budget to pay
teacher top-up incentives for ALP and provision of stationary. When asked if there are any factors that
may hinder enrolment of male and female youth in the centres they expressed that community attitudes
to education is not an obstacle to enrolment, rather availability of services.
The Authorities reported that out of the 1,755 CAFAAG demobilised in 2015 from the SSDA Cobra
Faction, 325 CAAFAG had been in Pibor County and another 180 in Vereteth and that they are
expecting more to be demobilised in the coming years. They were not sure of the exact figures for the
other counties. It was viewed by the Authorities that the main issues for the recently demobilised
CAAFAG is not integration into the community, but rather in fighting between each other over food
and other commodities. The Authorities expressed concern that if school does not continue for them,
they will want to return to armed groups. It was reported most are living with families – if not their
parents then relatives.
3.7 Improving Children´s Education
The feedback from the focus groups, although this was not expressed as an issue by the County
Education Authorities demonstrated that a major obstacle to education were community attitudes to
education, especially girls education, demonstrating that more needs to be done to raise community
awareness on the importance of education, changing attitudes and behavior. Interestingly, during the
assessment, Plan International met with UNESCO which is currently in the process of setting up a
community radio, which if this is successful could be a much needed community outreach channel.
The details are as follows:
UNESCO is currently in the process of launching a community radio in GPAA which will have a 25km
coverage, reaching Gumuruk, Lekeungole and Vereteth. The station will be based in Pibor centre and
radio shows are going to be centered on culture, education, peace and health. It will be in the four local
languages – Nayauk, Murle, Kachipo and Jie. The shows will be aired on FM frequency so people can
access it on their cell phones. UNESCO has distributed portable windup radios in the communities
covered by the radio and establish a listening club for each radio distributed. Six of these groups have
already been established in Pibor centre, including one for youth, one for women and one for elders.
UNESCO´s goal is that 50% of radio staff to are female. Currently this is proving difficult and only 1
out of 5 participants trained for Nayuak radio shows were women and only 1 out of 16 were women in
the Murle training. UNESCO hopes that these initial women will inspire and encourage others.
UNESCO is also in the process of opening a Community Learning Centre for Adults. It was supposed
to be launched in March 2015 but due to staff turnover has been stalled and to date there is still
uncertainty as to when it will be finally launched.
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3.8 Other informal education opportunities
Community Aid for Development (CAD) was supposed to set up four youth centres for both out of
school youth and CAAFAG by the end of 2015, but to date this target has not been reached. These will
include some elements of informal, unaccredited ALP and unaccredited vocational training activities.
UNICEF stated that ultimately they prefer ALP centres are in government primary schools as this is
more sustainable in the long term. Also the ALP programmes in primary schools are for the youth who
choose a more formal education root. Thus the two systems should run in parallel. It was discussed the
possibility of UNICEF being part of the project steering committee in Pibor to ensure the two
programmes are complimentary. For example if there are youth seriously falling behind ALP and
eventually drop out and do not want to rejoin, to help transfer them to the youth centres, and in the
reverse, if there are youth at the centres who want to seriously rejoin formal education, to support their
transition to the ALP centres
3.9 Child protection
Girls and young women: Plan International´s experience working in GPAA, along with feedback
from all participants in the FGDs, demonstrates that girls and young women among the most vulnerable
populations in GPAA and advancing gender equality issues will be critical in any humanitarian
intervention. They are more exposed to sexual and gender based violence. Cultural factors condoning
child marriage and resulting early pregnancies pose major cultural obstacles in girls´ access to
education. Girls being prevented from enrolling or made to drop out of school by their families due to
the common belief that education ´spoils´ them because being in education reduces their marriage
prospects was repeatedly expressed in focus group discussions with adolescent boys, girls, teachers
and parents alike. Gender stereotypes and roles also contribute to girls and young women being in
charge of care of children, elderly, and having daily household chores such as collecting water, wood,
cooking and selling small items such a fire wood on the market.
Demobilisation, Disarmament and Reintegration of CAAFAG in GPAA: In 2015, UNICEF
supported the demobilisation of 1,755 CAFAAG from SSDA Cobra Faction in GPAA and if the peace
deal does not collapse, hope to support the DDR of 15-16,000 CAAFAG in stages over the coming
year, including 2-4,000 in Greater Upper Nile Region. Out of the 1,755 in GPAA, 165 were moved to
Poachalla, and the remaining 1,595 after a period in Interim Care Centres (ICCs) have been reunited
with their families in the counties of GPAA.
UNICEF have informed Plan International that 2-300 CAFAAG were missed out during the 2015 DDR
processes and based upon an independent agreement with the Government (spate from the peace treaty)
they are going to be released this year in GPAA
Upon demobilization in 2015, each of children/youth were given a goat or sheep to start up livelihoods.
They also gave some agriculture tools, and planning to start vocational skills training to the youth
targeting this mobilized children or youth. UNICEF also has put up water sources for both human and
animals in the locations where these former CAAFAG have been reunited with their families;
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It was stated out of the above number of children demobilized, 1000 are enrolled in ALP and primary,
but for those enrolled in formal ALP, the centres have funding until April 2016.
Current initiatives: Plan International is currently operating two child friendly spaces in GPAA and
one more in under construction. Plan has also supported the formation and training of 3 CMCPMs
which have been trained in identifying, reporting and referring cases of child abuse as well as
unaccompanied and separated children (UASC). Part of UNICEF´s work plan related to the 2016
strategy for DDR is establishing 16 CBCPNs, one per payam, in GPAA. UNICEF does not have
funding, nor has partners in GPAA with expertise to establish these and asks if Plan can at least set up
some of the 16 CBCPNs. It is hoped that eventually the CBCPNs will be at boma level, but at first they
need to be functional and community owned at payam level before this step can be taken.
RECOMMENDATIONS
In all education interventions, supplying scholastic materials will be essential to not only the
quality of education, but to boosting enrolment and retention of learners.
Specific activities such as community based campaigning and distribution of dignity kits will
be fundamental in supporting female enrolment and retention in learning spaces – especially
adolescent girls in ALP centres.
ALP centres should be established in Gumuruk and Vereteth the continuation of ALP centres
in Likaungole (1 centres) and Pibor (3 centres) supported as funding will likely end in April
2016 and continuation is required to mitigate major disruption which could prompt further re-
recruitment.
PTAs should be mobilised to hold teachers accountable to make sure there is no corporal
punishment.
Female teachers should be trained and recruited where possible and community campaigning
can support the community acceptance of female teachers.
Recruiting school mothers could be a successful approach to try and overcome to chronic lack
of female teachers and ensure female role models can support female learners inside and outside
of the classroom. It will be difficult to identify illiterate women in all communities and enrolling
illiterate women to provide support in walking the girls to school and organizing homework
support clubs and some minor classroom supervision should be considered.
CBCPNs should be developed in areas where these do not exist. Currently PI has 2 networks
in Pibor and 1 in Gumuruk but no such networks exist in Vereteth and Likaungole – both areas
where former CAFAAG have been recently reunited with their immediate and wider families.
UNICEF has recommended Plan use the Community Based Psychosocial support tool kit as
part of the CBCPMs training and orientation and as part of a national roll out of this new toolkit,
designed specifically for South Sudan.
Former CAAFAG demobilised from the SSDA Cobra Faction in 2015 and the group of 200 –
300 to be demobilized in the coming period are included in ALP interventions.
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ALP centres should also include where possible recreational activities such as sports and school
gardens. The latter will also support youth to develop vocation skills and learn important
lessons related to nutrition.
Establish ECCD centres in Pibor, Gumuruk, Vereteth and Likaungole as the children in these
Counties are in high need of this kind of services. It is advisable to set a center per each
community in these locations. There are no structures for ECCD centres available. Options
include Plan to consider double use of current CFSs in Pibor (2) and Gumuruk (1) and establish
TLS in Likuangole (1) and Vereteth (1).
Coordination with Education cluster is fundamental in implementation, especially given the
limited resources to respond to high numbers of vulnerable community members, girls and
CAAFAG.
