Child Support
The children on the project in Juba, South Sudan face a lot of struggles but are doing well. They are very positive about school – so many children in South Sudan are unable to go to school and they see it as a real opportunity not to mention how much they simply enjoy learning! In general their health has been good, being supported by the project enables them to access health care. Although this is in a fairly rudimentary clinic it does enable them to access medication and makes a significant difference to their wellbeing. Over the years we have seen the boys and girls on the project really develop and grow into lovely young people who work hard, love God, are good to each other and hopeful about their futures.
Ongoing Insecurity
The context of the work continues to be challenging. When we were visiting the project in the summer, some of the project and visiting team were taken to the police and questioned over our activities. After we left South Sudan, with the project now having been in the spotlight, three team members were held them in prison for several days. Security is often arbitrary and coercive and the team needs our prayers as they navigate this.
One of the team described the situation in South Sudan by saying, ‘Life is worse in South Sudan now because of the money devaluing and food is very expensive. Parents fail in their responsibilities to their children and leaders fight for power.’ One US dollar would buy 1000 South Sudanese pounds (SSP) at the start of 2024 and less than two years later that has risen to 4500 SSP. The inflation rate was 112% in 2024 and forecast to be almost 100% this year (2025). An ex-soldier who worked with us on one of the days explained, ‘The work you are doing is amazing because the suffering here is going to new levels. Families cannot support their children to school and life is even worse than during the war. Poverty is a disease and people cannot look to the future. They struggle to get something on the table and to think of tomorrow is too far away – you cannot dream when you are hungry.’ Climate change is also exacerbating flooding where the project operates on flat land next to the Nile. Just before we visited the project floods had again overflowed into the houses of the team and project members destroying much of their property. But as David Gasana from Comfort Rwanda, which oversees the work in South Sudan said, ‘God’s love is not just for Rwandans and no-one is born to cry. So we believe South Sudan can be a good country in the future.’
New Home for Project ‘Mama’, Abuba
Whilst we were visiting the project we were able to see the outcome of some funds that had been donated for a new home for Abuba, the project mother. Homes in the area are fairly basic – poles are planted into the ground, some cross beams added and iron sheets nailed to the poles, a process taking two days for the complete home to be built. The new home gives Abuba much more space and she was delighted with her new home which will also be home for some of the children on the project.
Graduations and Family Challenges
There have now been sixteen graduates from the project. Most of those have been integrated with relatives who have taken an interest in the child because of his/her progress on the project. Relatives will sometimes appear, take their child and go. The situation can be complicated as men often have children by up to five different wives. In some cases, news reaches the team that relatives are coming to take one of the girls to marry an old man and on such occasions the girl will be hidden until the danger is over. However, we have been encouraged that the move to be with relatives, both prepared and spontaneous has generally been a positive one. There have also been one or two children who have been supported in small business and have also become self-sufficient.Â
Overall, the work in South Sudan remains extremely challenging, particularly for the in-country team who work incredibly hard in the midst of very challenging circumstances. However, a little can change a life, and every little bit of change truly is blessing and transforming the lives of young people and families. Thank you for your part in this and we hope to see the work continue to grow and change many lives.
