The Challenge - Educating girls in South Sudan

Female children in South Sudan face extreme adversity in the pursuit of academic success

Even a basic education is a right denied to many. Young girls and especially young women are less likely to enroll and more likely to drop out.

Despite these challenges, they are the backbone of the society: they cook, clean, care for younger children, get water, do the laundry, take care of family gardens, and collect the firewood.

Students in Loreto Rumbek
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South Sudan - the reality

In 2024, South Sudan was ranked as the world’s most difficult nations for girls to receive an education.

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Only 37% of girls will enroll in an educational program

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Just 2% of girls will go on to enroll in Secondary School

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52% of girls are married before the age of 18
  • Only 37% of girls will ever enroll in an educational program; only 10% will graduate from Primary School.
  • Only 2% of girls will enroll in Secondary School.
  • Cumulative dropout rate of 47% in our region in 2023 because of early marriage, teenage pregnancy or lack of family support.
  • Average dropout year is Primary 4; half of the girls in school will drop out at this level.
  • 52% of girls are married before the age of 18; 17% before turning 15.
  • 90% of women in South Sudan are functionally illiterate.
  • Only 76% of girls that take the National Secondary School Certificate exam will pass with a score above 50%.
  • Only 18% of teachers in this area are female.
  • Only 35% of primary school teachers in the area are trained/certified.
  • Student to text book ratio is 8.4 students per textbook.
  • Only 56% of schools have access to drinking water.
  • 15% do not have access to latrines or other sanitation facilities at schools.
  • Only 24% of schools have access to a power supply.
  • Over 95% of schools lack access to health care facilities.

The Loreto Difference

The young girls in our program – both the Loreto Primary School and the Loreto Girls Secondary School – receive support through meals, access to water, healthcare, security, and social programs to help engage them, and the community, so that they can receive a high-quality and relevant education.

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School’s dropout rates have remained under 5% since 2014

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62% have enrolled in, are attending, or have graduated from 3rd level education

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More than half of teaching staff are female
  • In the past 10 years, Loreto Girls Secondary school has more than doubled its student enrolment from 184 girls in 2015 to 385 in the year 2024.
  • The girls can choose an academic path – either arts, or sciences. The school supplements the standard South Sudan curriculum with an English intensive program, computer training, and practical application for agriculture and computer skills.
  • In 2023, 52 girls graduated from Secondary school bringing the total number of graduates from Loreto Girls Secondary school to over 400 young South Sudanese women.
  • At Loreto, the student to textbook ratio is 1:1.
  • More than half of the teaching staff at Loreto is female.
  • All students receive free unrestricted access to health care, health education and psychosocial support from trained and experienced medical personnel available in the Loreto compound.
  • Loreto Girls Secondary School’s dropout rates have remained under 5% since 2014.
  • Loreto girls receive a relevant education: 67% have enrolled in, are attending, or have graduated from 3rd level education.
  • Over 40 former students are currently in university in East Africa and South Sudan, more than 10 former students have served as staff in the Secondary School, clinic and administration offices.
  • Loreto girls have access to power and water all day and night.
    There is 1 toilet for every 6 girls in a safe environment that offers protection from sexual harassment.

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