The Ministry of General Education has announced that the number of children enrolled in schools this year is nearly 1.6 million in South Sudan as compared to previous years.
The Undersecretary Michael Lopuke Lotyam told the press that the number of children in school increased because of the cash transfers to girls, payment of incentives to teachers with funding from UK and introduction of school feeding program.
‘The enrolment has passed 1.5 million children who are attending schools. This statistic is drawn from about three thousand eight hundred schools in the entire country. This is important news. On the 18th of May, the Minister Deng Deng Hoc Yai signal the enrolment of 1.5 million and as we talk as of today {04 May 2018′, the enrolment has already gone to 1.6 million. This enrolment is seen from school attendant monitoring system’, says Mr Lopuke.
Administrators of Juba Girls Secondary and Juba ‘one’ Girls primary schools mention conflict and the current economic crisis in South Sudan as the major factors affecting children from going to school.
Juba One Girls Deputy Head teacher, Sosthenes Mabruk Timothy attributes the reason for low enrolment in his school due to the ongoing conflict and economic crises.
‘The number of pupils enrolled last year was nine hundred and this year, it is eight hundred which means there is difference of one hundred. The reason could be the current crisis in the country. In this current situation you find that some of the learners will dropout from school due to the crisis. I think this could be the reason’, Deputy Headmaster Mabruk notes.
Another Deputy Head teacher from Juba Boys Primary School, Clementaina Kiden Arkangelo says there is increase of learners in her school this year.
She says the slight increase from seven hundred and eighty seven to eight hundred and ten this year is because of the introduction of feeding at school by World Food Program.
‘Last year, the total number of pupils who were enrolled in my school was 787. Currently I have 810. There is increment. Last year at the beginning, there was no feeding program. Them some of the children started dropping out. So when they heard that the world food program has brought some food to the school, most of those who dropped out return to school. So this makes the enrolment to increase this year because of the food’ Deputy Headmistress Kiden admits.
A senior four student in Juba Girls Secondary School, Winy Achie says she faced it difficult this year to pay her school fees due to the economy crises. But she however appreciates the GESS program for paying her school fees.
‘GESS sometimes helps ladies. They school girls receive support from GESS once a year. So when they support me with that money, I will keep up to when the school starts it will help me to buy some exercise books, bag, and other basic things to sustain me in school’, says Winy Achie.
There are over seven hundred thousand female and eight hundred thousand male learners enrolled in school across the country this year.