South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Simon Deng
The Office of the Vice President for Gender and Youth in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on Wednesday launched a 6-month paid internship program for 200 graduates across the country.
Mohamed Abchir, UNDP Country Representative said the government-initiated program demonstrates the unwavering dedication to empowering women and youth in the country.
“This program marks a significant step in our collective efforts to invest in this great nation’s future through leadership, inclusivity and economic empowerment through initiatives that will make notable impact,” said Abchir during the launching ceremony of the program in Juba.
Abchir said the mentorship program aims to build a generation of professional, confident and empowered women and men who will advance South Sudan in all sectors including public and private sector.
“The Women and Youth Leadership Programme is designed to address imbalances by offering, paid internship, personalized career mentorship, on-the-job skills training and potential employment opportunities to our graduates,” he said.
Rebecca Nyandeng Garang De Mabior, the Vice President for Gender and Youth Cluster said that 72 percent of the country’s population is young with more than half being women. She emphasized the need to increase investment in youth and women across the country.
“As we launch the women and youth leadership program, we are here to give our young women and men not just hope but real chance to grow and to gain experience. This initiative is more than just a program, it is a commitment to our future and that future rest in the hands of our young people,” said Nyandeng.
Athieng Suzan, a graduate of business administration with specialization in human resource management from the Catholic University, said the program represents a critical investment in the future of the youth and women.
“This program will help the young people to reach their full potentials. As we can see in this country there is a big number of youth that are unemployed and through this program the youth can find a direction,” said Suzan.
Debora Akech, Undersecretary in the Ministry of Youth and Sports said the internship program initiated is in line with the youth development policy that is waiting for approval in the national parliament.
“The leadership program launched today is a support into development of the next generation of young women and youth of South Sudan, there is no true development that is more effective than the empowerment of women and youth,” said Akech.
Charles Underland, Country Manager for the World Bank emphasized the importance of providing services, hotlines, and safe houses for women who have suffered from gender-based violence.
He also called for the provision of technical and financial support towards women-led enterprises.
“Youth of course, in any country are the future of the country. It is a future that needs to be cherished. It is a future that needs to be developed and it is a future that needs to be invested in,” said Underland.
Nadia Arop Dudi, Minister of Culture, Museum and Heritage said inspiring young leaders needs a strong set of tools that include building network, leadership and entrepreneurial skills.
“Our children need to be backed up in transformation of their life, it is very important as leaders to empower young people. We need transformed youth so that we have peace, stability and a country that is good for everyone,” said Dudi.
Paul Tholen, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Netherlands said the participation of young women is falling short of the potential when it comes to economic participation in the private sector.
“70 percent of South Sudan’s population is young under 30 years, and half of that group is female. However, and notwithstanding the absence of statistical data, I dare say that the opportunities for young women to advance in life are not equal to those of young men,” said Tholen.
David Dau Achuoth, Executive Director in the office of the Vice President for Gender and Youth Cluster said the 6- internship program is going to help reduce on the high youth unemployment by giving opportunity to young people to participate in the workforce market.
