An estimated 3.1 million children in South Sudan, aged 3 to 17 are vulnerable and at protection risk. Their access to education has been interrupted due to humanitarian crises induced by protracted conflict, displacement, poverty, food and livelihood insecurity.
During the three years’ period, HDI South Sudan Education Programme plans to provide access to education in emergency services to 20,000 South Sudanese boys and girls.
With a focus on the improved access to safe and protective education services, the programme will provide a formal and non-formal education programme for more than 20,000 emergency/crisis affected children and youths from the host community, IDPs, IDP returnees and spontaneous refugee returnees.
Through an integrated approach, the programme will ensure equitable access to quality and inclusive cross-sectoral basic services. By providing access to safe and secure learning spaces/ environments, children will benefit from key life-saving and life sustaining activities such as psychosocial support, water, sanitation, and hygiene education and school feeding programme.
Against the background of increasing needs and more demands on urgent support for early childhood education, HDI Education Programme will provide early learning support for children of ages between 3 and 5. This will provide opportunities for school readiness and linkages to primary and secondary education, and also protect the children from all forms of violence. Investment in early learning, formal and non-formal education protects targeted communities and children from being involved in activities causing a humanitarian crisis.
The programme will continue to maintain key education
HDI South Sudan PROFILE “Humanity in Heart” in emergencies interventions in the conflict-affected and food-insecure areas for IDPs, host communities and returnees.
This includes support for teaching and learning, psychosocial support programming, infrastructure improvement, school WASH activities, teacher training and provision of incentives. The programme will improve the quality of education and protection services at all levels for all children, including children with disabilities through establishing recreational spaces, learning and cognitive development and build teachers’ capacity to deliver quality services. This will be done through the protection mainstreaming activities including medical care, legal support, safety and psychosocial services for at-risk children and women as well as GBV survivors.
Under the strategic objective targeting building resilience of the community, HDI Education Programme aims to enhance the capacity of the community and education actors to mitigate the impact of emergencies on children and youth.
By providing access to cross sectoral basic services and predictable access to livelihoods, the programme will also address the needs of the returnees.
Through the increased cross-sectoral activities, the programme aims to support durable solutions of the targeted population groups.