This project aims to strengthen the education system in South Sudan through active community and civil society participation, stakeholder coordination and work to improve budget spending on the education sector, all to improve access to gender equal and inclusive education for all children in the country. 

The NEC of South Sudan will through this project be a key actor in mobilising CSOs, grassroots communities and government agencies towards a joint action to strengthen the provision of gender equal and disability inclusive education. This will be done by: 

• Utilising the NEC’s network and technical capacity to mobilise and build capacity of stakeholders. 

• Leveraging NEC’s grassroots, local, national, and international networks to build sustainable partnerships to promote girls’ education and the inclusion of children living with disabilities. 

• Influencing humanitarian actors’ policy and practices. 

• Advocating for the effective implementation of gender equal and inclusive education policies and practices. 

By the end of the project period, the interventions are expected to contribute to increased engagement of civil society in effectively implementing and monitoring education policies in order to achieve gender equity and disability inclusion in education. 

The NEC of South Sudan has already implemented a first project phase between April 2022 – December 2023. The current phase will carry on the work and will enable the NEC to strengthen the relations build previously to stakeholders at national, sub-national, and community level. The NEC has further used the opportunity to reflect on lessons learned, which has led to a greater understanding of key issues affecting the education sector and education service provision to the citizens of South Sudan. 

Some main activities of the project will include: 

• Capacity building workshops for CSOs, government agencies, and parent teacher associations. 

• Meetings between the NEC and its CSO members to strengthen governance, coordination, information sharing, and learning across members. 

• Workshops to raise awareness on education policies and education strategic plans, with focus on gender and disability inclusion. 

• NEC will facilitate workshops on budget processing and budget execution with civil society actors and other education authorities at state, county, and school levels. 

• Meetings with government and ministry of education officials, and other parliamentarians on the importance of gender and inclusion in education policies. 

The aims of the project are closely connected to the vision of the NEC, which envisions equal access to inclusive and quality education for all children, as a tool for sustainable peace and development in South Sudan. By engaging local leadership, stakeholders, children, and civil society the role of local ownership will be emphasised and will enable communities to continue engaging in mobilisation and collaboration. Thus, both the NEC, its members and other civil society actors at local and national level will continue to carry on the efforts made and results achieved in this project to ensure its longevity.

A previous phase of the project was carried out between April 2022 – December 2023. The current project is part of the EOL extension phase of 2024-2026. Read more about the previous phase of the project here.