Youth Education in South Sudan : Current Opportunities and Challenges

In South Sudan, the importance of focusing on young people is clear. They represent the majority of the population, with the average South Sudanese being 17 years old and the average 3rd grader reported as being already 14 years old. Furthermore, South Sudanese youth have low educational attainment, inconsistent economic participation and are also affected by the widespread violence that has existed for a number of years in different regions of the country. This paper presents a summary of information on programs that appear to be effective in the given context and identifies some alternative pathways for young people. Information on current programs is presented as well as key findings and issues, highlighting education and training needs, provisions, and opportunities across programs. The goal is to provide a focused set of recommendations of ways in which the World Bank can effectively contribute to the lives of young people in South Sudan. The review focuses on two main areas of programs: (1) education in its various forms, from secondary schools (which serve only a small proportion of the youth) and the accelerated learning program; and (2) technical and vocational education and training programs that focus on skills for livelihoods. Integral to both areas is the importance of providing young people with the foundations of functional literacy and functional numeracy, and specific employable skills, as well as addressing socio-emotional issues, as building blocks for their lives, their livelihoods and their civic engagement. The education sector in South Sudan, a highly patchworked configuration, currently functions within the realities of gender constraints, livelihoods issues, psychosocial and socio-emotional stress and many situations of displaced refugees and internally displaced persons.