Early Childhood Education (ECD) and care are receiving growing attention in South Sudan, thanks to the current role of Help a Child South Sudan as a lead and Board Chair of the National Education Coalition. However, most young children still have no access to proper education because of a lack of ECD centres.

With the privately funded Kids@Risk project, combined with UNICEF funding, Help a Child is a key player in expanding ECD services across South Sudan and one of the main organizations investing in ECD in South Sudan. Activities focus on the establishment of ECD centres, integrating Early Childhood Education, Child Protection activities, and food provision through tree planting and vegetable gardening around the ECD centres, fostering education, nutrition, and sustainability for a brighter future for South Sudan’s children.

The establishment of four highquality ECD facilities, caregiver training, and ECD child enrolment has sharpened our focus and is expected to influence our future in the years to come. Donors such as UNICEF and local authorities in underserved areas like GPAA are drawn to the proposed convergence of ECD, Parenting, and Child Protection. The high calibre of the pilot work has earned us a solid reputation and has made us the standard with regard to the importance of an inclusive approach to ECD.

In South Sudan, there is great unrest: millions of people are affected by violence, hunger, or the consequences of climate change. Amidst all this unrest, it is not possible to set up our multi-year village program, but working together with families can be done.

In the coming three years, Help a Child is leading the South Sudan Joint Response (SSJR). From 2024-2026, we are committed to helping people in South Sudan suffering from hunger, lack of clean drinking water, and living in unsafe situations with their families. We do this together with our partners from the Dutch Relief Alliance: Care, Dorcas, Plan International, Save the Children, Tearfund and War Child Holland, and with South Sudanese organizations Across, ADA, Aid Link, CEF, Coalition for Humanity, SAADO, UNIDOR, and WOCO. A great opportunity to work together for a better future for children in South Sudan!

517,932 people
Within the SSJR, Help a Child will mainly be active in the regions of Pibor and Tonj North, but humanitarian assistance will also be provided in Melut, Malakal, Akobo, Rubkona, Mayendit, and Abyei. The goal is to reach 517,932 people with this assistance over three years. Help a Child focuses on the protection and education of young children. Other organizations will focus on food security and livelihoods, water supply, hygiene, and food for children and pregnant women.

Strong people
In the areas where we work, people especially want to get to work themselves. Something that fits well with the approach of Help a Child. Sonja, humanitarian expert in South Sudan, says: “In 2011, the country became independent, but since then, there have also been countless internal conflicts resulting in millions of refugees and poverty. I see that people carry traumas with them. And I see strong people. A population that does not give up, is proud of the country, and does not want to remain dependent on external aid. (…) Restoring that dignity: that is the impact of our work, and that’s what I am committed to.”

[button_primary link=”http://dev.helpachild.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/02_Digitaal_SSJR-one-pager-incl-targets.pdf”]SSJR Information Leaflet[/button_primary]