Rapid Education Needs Assessment Report
Mingkaman of Awerial in Lakes State
Date: 15th – 16th January, 2014
Executive Summary
According to EMIS data 2012, Bor County of Jonglei State had 34,815 pupils in primary school alone. Following
the onset of the conflict between government and opposition on 15 December 2013, approximately 41,048
children from pre-primary, primary, AES and special needs from Bor County were affected and displaced into
Lakes State causing damage and occupation of a school since December 2013. This number excludes secondary
students who are yet to be assessed. These IDP students spread to a number of counties in Lakes State including
Awerial, Yirol East, Yirol West and Rumbek Centre, but the education authorities from Bor estimated that 80% of
them are in Mingkaman payam in Awerial County. The South Sudan academic calendar begins in the first week of
February up to second week of December with short breaks in between.
In the light of this, the Education Cluster in Lakes State conducted a cluster meeting on 10th January 2014 and
decided that the Cluster conducted an assessment first in Awerial and secondly in Yirol West and Yirol East
counties. Hence an inter-agency assessment team comprising UNICEF, Save the Children, Plan South Sudan,
SMoE Lakes and RRC conducted two days assessment starting from 15th. – 16th.January 2014.The assessment
covered 3 out of 6 payams namely Mingkaman, Bunagok, and Puluk . Local authorities from these payams and
education authorities from the displaced people were met and they provided the information in this report. The
estimated total number of school children affected in these payams is 41,048 including 16,890 girls.
The influx of over 84,000 IDPs into Awerial has resulted into trauma, occupation of schools, missing and
destroyed learning materials, destruction of school office equipment, misuse of school latrines, and break down of
school water point. As schools are due to open next month, the educational intervention before schools reopen
has become a priority to provide temporary learning spaces, advocacy for evacuation of schools, provision of
school supplies, provision of life skills training, psychosocial support for the teachers, and teacher training. Cluster
partners are expected to provide these essential educational services such as life skills training and psychosocial
support for teachers to enable affected children continue their learnings when schools re-open next month.
Emergency Context
The type of emergency in Awerial County is man-made. It is caused by conflict between government and
opposition which started on 15 December 2013 in Juba and spread to Bor where these IDPs have come from. As
a result lives have been lost, food crops have been left behind or destroyed, houses burnt and approximately
84,000 people displaced. The displacement made IDPs leave everything behind and stretched available food
items and services within vulnerable host communities.
Humanitarian community made assessment in January 2014. Most clusters have started to respond to that
assessment, but the Education Cluster could not respond immediately because all schools in South Sudan are still
on holidays. However, the Cluster conducted its cluster meeting on 10 January 2014 and decided to conduct an
assessment between 15 and 16 January 2014. With this report the Education Cluster scheduled its cluster
1
meeting on 21st January 2014 in order to prepare a joint response plan to deliver education services before
schools re-open in the first week of February 2014.
These two Tables below show the enrolment of students and the number of teachers in Bor County in 2013 before
the crises erupted.
Table No.1: Enrolment figures in Bor before the crises
Education levels
Girls
S/N
1
Pre-school
970
2
Primary school
14,109
3.
AES
1,794
4
Children with special needs
17
5
Secondary school
N.A
6
University
N.A
TOTAL
16,890
Boys
1396
20,706
2,028
28
N.A
N.A
24,158
Table No.2: Number of teachers in Bor County as of December 2013
S/N
Education levels
Females
Males
1
Pre-school
3
5
2
Primary school
67
387
3
AES
11
55
4
Children with special needs
0
8
5
Secondary school
N.A
N.A
6
University
N.A
N.A
Total
81
455
Total
2,366
34,815
3,822
45
N.A
N.A
41,048
Total
8
454
66
8
N.A
N.A
536
Table No.3 below shows schools affected by displacement in the host community in Awerial County
School
Mingkaman
Primary
School
Kalthok
Primary
School
Dwany Gok
Primary
School
Panyang
Primary
School
Building
3 class rooms
invaded by bats
and rats, 4 class
rooms occupied
by NGOs as
stores and clinic.
1 concrete block
with 4 class
rooms,2 other
classes under
trees.
4 temporary
class rooms, 2
other class
rooms under the
tree.
Physical Infrastructure
Doors/Window
Latrine
Water
Furniture
All class rooms
have doors and
windows.
2 blocks of 3
doors in bad
condition.
Bore hole
broken down.
Has school
furniture.
Windows made of
wire mess but no
doors.
1 latrine block
with 2 doors.
No water source
within school
premises.
No furniture
No doors, no
windows.
1 latrine block
with 6 doors
collapsing.
There is one
bore hole 30
metres away.
Out of 106
desks, only 68
are available and
37 used as
firewood.
No pit latrine
No water point
No furniture
5 classes under
trees.
2
Team Composition, Objectives and Methodology
Team Composition
A joint inter-agency rapid assessment team composed of 5 people from UNICEF, Save the Children, Plan South
Sudan, SMoE and RRC conducted the assessment on 15th and 16th January 2014 in Mingkaman Awerial County
in Lakes State. The assessment team was accompanied by local education authorities conducting interviews with
the local education authorities, head teachers, RRC, host community and IDPs. The full list of the team members
is provided in Annex 1.
Objectives
The Assessment was intended to assess the impact of the conflict on the education system and infrastructure in
Awerial County and ascertain the number of pupils affected from both IDP and host community school children
and their needs so that humanitarian actors in the education sector could be in position to make a response plan
and provide response.
The team adopted multiple approaches in the assessment. The main tool used was the South
Sudan Initial Education Inter cluster Rapid Assessment Tool in Annex 3. However there were interviews and
observation. Local authorities from both host community and IDP population such as the Education authorities
and, payam education supervisors, planning and budgeting officer were interviewed. The list of key informants
with their tittles and contacts numbers is provided in Annex 2.
Methodology
The team adopted various methods in conducting the assessment and they include the following:
 Site visits
IDPs inhabited many locations in the county some of which are very far from each other. The team therefore
selected those locations which are highly occupied by IDPS namely Mingkaman, Kalthok, YolAkot, Bunagok ,
Dwanygok Panyang and due to time constraint, the team visited only five locations out of six.
 Meetings
The assessment team conducted meetings with local authorities RRC of Lakes, officials of SMoE Jonglei currently
displaced in Awerials i.e. County Planning and Budgeting Officer Payam Inspectors, payam education supervisor,
head teacher and host community and pupils.
 Interview
The team conducted interview with Planning and Budgeting Officer, Mr.John Majer of Jonglei SMoEST who is
currently displaced in Awerial.
Major Findings
Access and Learning Environments
According to the respondents from the education authorities amongst IDPs and education personnel within the
host community there are approximately 41,048 school children whose learning has been affected by the conflict
in Bor. Most of the IDPs moved from Bor to Awerial, Yirol East and Yirol West counties in Lakes State, but
majority of them are in Awerial County where they concentrated in Mingkaman Boma. According to the education
authorities, 80% of these school children are in Mingkaman. However, education authorities were unable to
provide data for secondary school children and university students. All seven primary schools in Awerial County
are not functioning because they are on long break. Five schools were visited; two are permanent, and one with
temporary structure and two are under trees. School learning materials and office equipment in Mingkaman
primary school were vandalized and occupied by IDPs. It is being occupied by IDPs and NGOs which are using
classrooms as stores for their supplies and as a clinic.
.
3
Teaching and Learning
Schools in Awerial County are not working simply because they are on long holidays. Teaching and learning is
expected to resume in the first week of February for the whole country as per the new school calendar. The main
language of instruction in the County is English. Therefore distribution of school materials can only be done when
schools reopen, however there is need to pre-position them to the county level before February. As stated earlier
all schools were closed down in the County not because of the emergency, but the long school holidays. Affected
children and parents stated that most of their learning materials such as books, pen and pencil were destroyed
during the incident in Bor. Displaced parents and children expressed their willingness despite shocks and
difficulties to start schooling in February 2014 of new academic year.
Teachers and Other Education Personnel
Table No.2 above shows there were 536 teachers in Bor County prior to the displacement to Awerial. According to
the education authorities within the IDPs, 60% of these teachers are estimated to be in Mingkaman and 40% in
other camps such as Yirol. The host community in Mingkaman payam has 7 schools with 40 teachers only. These
schools have PTAs but they are not trained and so they need training. The local educational authorities are
functioning in Awerial County, but they are located in Bunagok payam which is 10 kilometers from Mingkaman.
Given the scale of the IDP students there is need to liaise with the government so that IDP teachers can be
engaged in teaching since they are in the government payroll.
Education Policy
During the assessment, the team found that the number of girls enrolled to school and female teachers are very
low. There is a critical need for advocacy to increase girls’ enrolment and recruitment of female teachers. The
official school calendar begins in the first week of February, yet head teachers were not sure of the opening day of
the school. Advocacy with local authority for school enrolment and school calendar will be vital. School children
are expected to be enrolled into existing schools by adding more temporary classes to prevent from overcrowding.
In areas where there are no schools, an emergency learning space can be set up. Influx of IDPs into existing
schooling might create tension amongst host communities and IDPs. There is need for the government to
encourage both communities to accept IDP learners without discrimination. Government should ensure that all
schools occupied by IDPs be vacated before 1st February without violating the rights of IDPs by close
collaboration and coordination with RRC, SMoEST, Protection Cluster, Shelter Cluster, CCCM Cluster and
Education Cluster.
Conclusions and Recommendations
The Assessment team drew up the following recommendations:
1. Cluster level
 Education Cluster to meet urgently on 23rd January 2014 in Lakes to draw joint response plan
immediately.
 Advocacy with RRC, SMoEST, other Clusters (Shelter, CCCM and Protection) for evacuation of occupied
school and other education issues such as examination and school calendar.
2. Agencies
 To urgently provide temporary learning spaces (TLS).
 To preposition learning materials to Awerial County before 1st. February.
 Other sectors such as WASH should provide hygiene and sanitation facilities for newly set up TLS.
 Child Protection and Education to work together in creating child friendly spaces and psychosocial
support.
 Agencies to provide training on lifeskills and psychosocial support for education personnel including
PTAs.

WFP to provide school feeding programme to learners.
3. Government level
 Advocate with Ministry of Education for recruitment of IDP teachers to be deployed in Mingkaman,
Awerial.
 Ministry of Education to advice head teachers and county education director to enroll IDP children without
discrimination.
 All education stakeholders to advocate for enrolment displaced children and host communities including
girls.
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Annexes
Annex 1: Contact details of assessment team
S/No
01
02
Name
Angudubo Alfred
Taban
Abraham Maker
Gol
03
Jula Alajabo
04
Alfred Wani
Organization
Plan
International
Save the
Children
State Ministry of
Education
UNICEF
E-mail
[email protected]
[email protected]
rg
Telephone
0927822418/0955863400
0927188509
[email protected]
0926658750
Annex 2: Contact of persons met
s/No
Name
01
John ,Majer
02
John Parachi
03
Micheal Chuti
04
Makuei Bech Makuei
05
Displaced learners
Tittle
Bor County Director
for Budgeting and
Planning
RRC Awerial
County.
Head Teacher
Mingkaman Primary
School.
Teacher Comboni
Primary school
Annex 3: South Sudan Rapid Assessment tool.
5
Email
Telephone
N.A
0955858681
N.A
N.A
N.A
N.A
N.A
N.A