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In the state of South Sudan, the education sector is considered one of the sectors that have been neglected since 2011 and after independence from Sudan. Things became more complicated after the outbreak of war, which displaced hundreds of thousands of children to other regions and to neighboring countries. According to UNICEF, 4 million children have lost their education, whether inside South Sudan or among refugees in neighboring countries.
The presidential decision for free education for the primary and secondary stages, which is approved by the transitional constitution in the second chapter, Article 29, second paragraph, which states: (All levels of government must promote education at all levels and guarantee free and compulsory education in the primary stage…), and the decision left Echoes and debates, especially in the official and social circles, and found welcome and support from those interested in the country, and many questioned about the seriousness of implementation and the provision of alternative funding for the public education sector, and the ability of the government to respond to the needs of schools, and improve the meager salaries of teachers, after the abolition of exorbitant fees, which burdened citizens. , which the schools relied on to pay their monthly obligations.
Although free education was approved by law nearly 12 years ago, it remained a dead letter without implementation.
Helen Christopher Lado, who has 3 children in private schools in the city of Juba, tells Monte Carlo International about her suffering with private education, whose fees have become beyond imagination. Presidential Council regarding free education, we are very happy with this decision, we will adopt it as the families of students and students, and now we are thinking of transferring our children from private schools to public schools if the necessary measures are implemented in the public sector, because this will relieve us of much of the burden and costs that burdened us with education private ).
It seems that the path towards free education is arduous unless it is given utmost importance, in the absence of new urgent reforms in this field, and the development of adequate budgets in the size of the challenges and shortages faced by education and workers in this field.
Retired professor of mathematics, Muhammad Ramadan Bakuto, who spent nearly 41 years in the field of teaching in Monte Carlo, says: “Attention to the teacher is the focal point. and required).
He links all of this to the material aspect of the basic needs of teachers and adds: (Teachers’ salaries are not in line with the high cost and living conditions, as the teacher needs many services in order to perform his task in the best way, such as transportation, treatment, and housing, so the teacher is like the pilot of the plane, if he suffers from something The lives of the passengers are in danger, and this is the situation now with the students; these requirements in the old system are called (chalk allowance), and Professor Muhammad goes on to say: (And to prevent the teachers from being exhausted in other work, such as private lessons or searching for another job to meet his necessary needs The competent authorities in the country should provide comfort to the teacher so that he can provide the service to the extent required, and according to what I see, education in the government sector will not improve unless the authorities respond to the requirements of teachers in addition to the full care of the state for education, more than ever before).
Many of the cultured and educated class still believe in the importance of government education despite the difficult circumstances the country is going through, as Judith Rubin, Vice-Chairman of the Education Committee of the Council of States in Juba, confirms that if the state could make every effort to put in place the basic structure for the educational process, and proceeded to implement the decision and its attached recommendations With it, the results in the education sector will be fruitful.” And Judit adds: “What we need to focus on now and above all is the implementation of this decision at the local grassroots level, to benefit from it in the development of the educational process, throughout the country of South Sudan as a whole.
This decision is the beginning of the education infrastructure, if public schools are strengthened by solving all the challenges they face such as salaries, a healthy environment and school meals, if all of this is available in public schools, then there will be no need to go to private education, but if not If all these obstacles are resolved, the problems related to education will remain.
Many parents of students and students hope that their children will return to school, after the new reforms in the public public education sector, especially poor families in remote areas on the outskirts of the country, which are considered the most affected by the war and the current economic decline, which requires unprecedented intervention from government agencies. Concerned and charitable organizations interested in education affairs in the country.
