International Assistance in South Sudan

Why we are on site

South Sudan is the youngest state in the world and very fragile. For a long time, brutal civil war raged in the country and even if there is officially peace prevailing today, it is very fragile. Conflicts flared up in 2013 and again in 2016, and sub-national conflicts continue to flare on a political and social level and above all between the many different tribes. The economy in South Sudan is currently in a very difficult situation, with prices having almost tripled in recent months. Many people can no longer afford the price of food and salaries especially for civil servants, often delay to be paid for months. South Sudan is at the very bottom of the Human Development Index.

In addition, the effects of climate change are particularly evident in South Sudan: The rainy seasons have not been reliable for several years now, and when it rains, it is so heavy that it leads to severe flooding. In the dry season, the soil is barren and yields little. Accessibility to clean water continues to prove difficult, as people often have to walk very long distances to get clean water. These and more have led to vulnerable groups most especially children suffer preventable diseases such as pneumonia, diarrhea, malaria among others. Child and maternal mortality rates still rank high throughout the country.

What we are doing

Johanniter International Assistance has been active in South Sudan since 2012. The focus of our activities is on the areas of health, food security, livelihoods, nutrition, protection and WASH (water, hygiene and sanitation). We are active in two states in South Sudan: Wau, located in Western Bahr el Ghazal State in western part of the country and Torit in Eastern Equatoria State in the south, close to the border with Uganda. We implement various projects in an integrated approach. 

We support the people with health projects. In Wau, we are building maternity wards at primary health facilities and train village health workers to provide health care services to children under five years. In our nutrition projects, we screen children under 5 years to determine their malnourishment status and provide additional food if needed. In Torit, we reach people in remote villages with mobile clinics. Within the communities, we raise awareness on protection related issues focusing mainly on Gender Based Violence (GBV), early marriages, and safeguarding from sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment. 

Another focus are WASH projects. We drill and rehabilitate boreholes to ensure the supply of clean drinking water. We construct institutional latrines at schools, clinics and market places. Working with farmer groups, we are focusing on food security and livelihoods where we train them on climate smart agronomic practices and support women on livelihoods skills such as bread making, sewing, knitting, crouching and fuel efficient stove making.