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This study was conducted with funding from the Danish International Development Agency (Danida) provided specifically to prepare for the launch of Oxfam education projects in Pibor and Juba in South Sudan. However, its findings will also be useful to the wider NGO community working in the country, with recommendations provided for the Government of South Sudan and for future programming by donors. The analysis focuses specifically on education, but it also aims to analyse gendered…

The persistence of gender inequality in education in Africa is due to poverty, cultural beliefs and traditions linked to gender-role expectations. This article presents the findings of a study that evaluated the outcomes of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded Gender Equity through Education (GEE) programme aimed at increasing the participation of girls in education through scholarship and mentoring activities in South Sudan. Using a convergent mixed-method design and feminist critique of gender…

Evidence is available to demonstrate the role of gender in different inter and intra state conflicts. This evidence mainly points to correlation between gender and conflict, rather than causation. Gender plays a key role in encouraging men – and in some cases, women – to take part in conflict, and it acts as a discourse to invoke, fuel and perpetuate conflict and violence. However, the evidence shows that gender is never alone as a cause…

Gender-based violence (GBV) primary prevention programs seek to facilitate change by addressing the underlying causes and drivers of violence against women and girls at a population level. Social norms are contextually and socially derived collective expectations of appropriate behaviors. Harmful social norms that sustain GBV include women’s sexual purity, protecting family honor over women’s safety, and men’s authority to discipline women and children. To evaluate the impact of GBV prevention programs, the research team sought…

In South Sudan, early and forced marriage has many devastating consequences: it increases girls’ risk of death or complications during pregnancy and childbirth in a country with one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the world; it is one of the primary reasons why 76% of South Sudanese girls are out-of-school; and it puts girls at greater risk of sexual, physical and emotional violence. Oxfam research presented in this report found that the…

Despite increasing recognition among international organizations that livelihood security, sustainable peace, conflict prevention and gender equality are complementary goals that require integrated policy approaches, there is to date limited evidence about the links between these key development pillars. This article provides an analysis of the links between food security, sustainable peace and gender equality, by making use of three case studies including Abyei to illustrate how specific policy interventions can simultaneously address the differentiated priorities…

South Sudanese women have been grossly under-represented in formal peace negotiations. However, they have been active in informal peacebuilding at the local level where peace means rebuilding society. Such informal peacebuilding is radically different to formal peace negotiations where male warlords and political leaders in new positions of power divide the spoils of war. This brief describes women’s informal peace work in South Sudan, and shows the extensive and valuable, but often unrecognized work that…

In 2005, South Sudan adopted a minimum of 25 percent women representation quota in its interim constitution. Following the independence, this quota was maintained, with the Transitional Constitution devoting three clauses to this important policy.  In 2013, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), the governing party, proposed raising this quota to increase women’s participation in public life. In the recently signed peace agreement, known as the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS), this…

This policy paper highlights opportunities to engage women at the local level to address community conflict issues, promote peace, and empower women as agents of change in South Sudan. It follows the analysis and findings of Search for Common Ground’s November 2017 Building a Constituency for Peace in South Sudan, which examined annual data on conflict perceptions and attitudes collected over a four-year span illuminate various opportunities for actors interested in peace to constructively engage….

This study, conducted as part of the What Works to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) in Conflict and Humanitarian Crises programme funded by the UK government, explores how programmes and policies to prevent and respond to VAWG have been integrated and addressed within post-conflict state-building policy and programming; and how, in conflict-affected countries, VAWG is related to efforts to achieve peace and stability. It is hoped that the findings, conclusions and recommendations of…

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