Programs
In villages across South Sudan, when you ask teens what they want in life, you get one answer: education. They dream of graduating from high school, trade school, or college. Unlike their parents, who did not get an education because they were in the bush fighting the country’s 21-year war of independence, the current generation of South Sudanese youth knows that education is the key to improving their circumstances and building their nation.
Unfortunately, they will face many obstacles. We designed Abraham Atem Foundation (AAF) programs to address those obstacles and help this generation of intelligent, determined, and passionate young people to forge a new future for South Sudan.
“If we are serious about the formation of a new Sudan, a new civilization that will contribute to the African world and to the human civilization, we must educate our kids.”
John Garang
Founding Father of South Sudan
“If we are serious about the formation of a new Sudan, a new civilization that will contribute to the African world and to the human civilization, we must educate our kids.”
John Garang
Founding Father of South Sudan
SPONSORS FOR HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS
Goal
Sponsor a growing number of talented high school girls whose parents cannot afford the fees.
Background
Because of the collapse of the public high school education system due to low government investment, most high schools are private. The typical $300 per student per year private school tuition is expensive for most parents due to the prevailing poverty in South Sudan. Few parents can afford the tuition for all their children, so they must choose which to educate and which to leave out. Most of the time, the girl stays home, while the boy is sent to school no matter how intelligent she may be. Girls forced to drop out of school often become victims of early marriage, most before their sixteenth birthday.
Scholarship Successes
Five girls, the 2019 pioneers of our scholarship program, will graduate from high school in December 2023. They all plan to go to college. The foundation has sponsored 20 girls to attend high school in the Bor area.
How Funds Are Used
Our Sponsorship Package includes school tuition, accommodation, board, guidance, counseling, and sanitary needs.
Vision
Bridge the gap between boys and girls in high school by sponsoring more girls to attend high school. Many parents cannot afford to send all of their children to high school. When forced to choose, most parents send their boys.
With your support, we will help a growing number of talented South Sudanese girls attend high school and create a brighter future.
BUILD BOR CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL
Goal
Build and run a high school in Bor to provide free quality education for students from all tribes and economic backgrounds.
Background
Education in South Sudan is in a poor state due to poor infrastructure, poor quality teaching, lack of school supplies, and high student dropout rates. Although United Nations (UN) agencies and international organizations have invested in improving primary school education, high school enrolment and the quality of learning are steadily declining.
Status
- AAF teams in South Sudan drafted the school curriculum
- The Bor County Education Department granted AAF an operation license and a piece of land for the campus southeast of Bor
- The architectural design is completed
- We have a cost estimate for building the first classrooms and a school library
- Construction can begin as soon as we have funds
Vision
Provide high-quality education with an emphasis on science education and leadership development. In a country divided by tribalism and ethnic nationalism, the school will be a model of coexistence and unity of all tribes from throughout the region. School staff and volunteers will be from all South Sudan tribes and communities.
With your support, we will break ground soon and, upon completion, help hundreds of teenagers get a high-quality high school education that paves the way for college or a successful career.
BUILD AND OPERATE A VOCATIONAL TRAINING CENTER
Goal
Youth vocational skills training and empowerment
Background
South Sudan was founded in 2011 after 21 years of civil war. During the 21-year war, South Sudanese people had no opportunity to learn trade skills. Little has changed in the decade since independence. Today, due to a lack of vocational schools and apprenticeships, there are few South Sudanese technicians, electricians, tailors, or hospitality professionals. Most skilled laborers are from neighboring countries. South Sudanese are youth jobless and dependent on UN relief. Today, if you want a toilet fixed in any South Sudanese city, a Kenyan or Ugandan will likely do the job because South Sudanese youth do not have the skills.
Vision
Provide vocational skills training to nineteen to 25-year-olds who dropped out of school. We will target former child soldiers, young women forced out of school and married off at young age, and others eager to learn a trade and earn a living.
Status
- Jonglei State granted a vocational training center operation license
- The following courses have been accredited by Bor County Education Department
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- Basic Computer skills
- Fashion and design
- Catering and Hospitality Management
- Plumbing
- Brick Laying and Concrete Practice
With your support, we will begin operations soon.
HUMAN RIGHTS PROGRAM: END CHILD AND FORCED MARRIAGE
Goal: end the scourge of child marriage and forced marriage in South Sudan.
Background
Child marriage and forced marriage are the most common forms of human rights abuses experienced by South Sudanese girls today. Parents of girls as young as fourteen marry their daughters off against the daughter’s wishes in exchange for cows and money. This has long been a practice of many South Sudanese tribes, but it is more common and extreme due to increasing poverty. Every day there are horrible stories of violence against girls who rejected their parent’s attempts to force them into marriage. Recently the father of a sixteen-year-old girl gouged her eyes out after she refused to marry a much older man.
Vision
Protect girls against forced marriage and related abuses.
- Lobby local and national South Sudan councils to pass laws to protect girls against violence by outlawing dangerous practices such as child and forced marriages.
- Establish a network of professionals, including lawyers and social workers, to teach communities about the need to end the practice of child marriage.
- Provide educational opportunities for young girls to empower them with knowledge and skills to resist abusive customs being imposed on them.
- Establish a center to rehabilitate and help abuse victims to recover and heal from abuse.
With your support, we will lobby and educate to assure all girls the opportunity for a brighter future.