In Pictures

Educating girls in South Sudan

Meet the girls who must overcome conflict, hunger, stigma and sexual abuse just to go to school.

Fourteen-year-old Jessica is cared for and receives an education with approximately 50 other vulnerable girls at a shelter in Juba. Since the conflict began in 2013, it is estimated that there are more than 10,000 separated, unaccompanied or missing children. Girls in South Sudan are increasingly vulnerable to abuse and early marriage, with many living in poverty and without parents. According to the founder of the shelter, sex work is normalised among young girls, who make less than a dollar per customer. Her goal is to teach girls that “the body, it’s the one that stays” and to teach them alternative ways of generating an income. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

28 Sep 2016

Unity State, South Sudan – Fierce fighting in her village in Unity State, kept 18-year-old Susan away from her school in Juba for more than a year. But even those girls who are able to attend often have to travel for hours to reach school.

And each day presents a new challenge: watching their friends drop out or get married off. Then there is the hunger. Amijong Garang, aged 14, describes the way it makes her feel. “My head is paining and sometimes I vomit,” she says.

The United Nations estimates that 2.3 million people have been displaced in South Sudan since December 2013. Forty-seven percent of those are school-aged children. Nearly one in three schools has been closed, destroyed or turned into barracks.

Girls in South Sudan are doubly vulnerable, with many being forced into early marriage and susceptible to sexual abuse and exploitation. An adolescent girl in South Sudan is three times more likely to die in childbirth than to complete primary school.

But despite these barriers, girls such as Susan and Amijong continue to chase their dreams – seeking an education and fighting for their futures in one of the world’s most volatile countries.

Girls play on a trampoline at the shelter in Juba. The orphanage houses about 50 girls, many of whom were abducted for domestic work, sexually abused, or forced into sex work before being taken in by the orphanage. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Mary, 12, is the daughter of farmers from the Terekeka region. Her dream is to become a doctor, but the odds are stacked against her. South Sudan has one of the highest incidences of early marriage and female dropout rates in secondary school are nearly 64 percent, according to Girls' Education South Sudan programme. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

On the outskirts of Juba, pupils study at a learning space for displaced children from the north of the country. They must overcome their hunger in order to concentrate on their studies. 'My head is paining and sometimes I vomit,' says 14-year-old Amijong Garang. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Ten-year-old Marie was found unaccompanied in a market in Juba when she was younger. She has been living at the orphanage ever since. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Sixteen-year-old Ajok, right, is from Malakal. She and her mother and two sisters are living in a community for displaced people on the outskirts of Juba. Ajok is the only family member able to attend school. She dreams of becoming a doctor one day. It is an ambition her mother supports. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Female pupils wait to enter their school which was temporarily closed due to flooding. As well as heavy rain, having to travel long distances on unreliable and costly transportation means reaching school is a challenge for many. 'The most horrible thing to hear is that all the girls are raped,' says Achal Arop, 17. 'There is nothing difficult that a girl cannot do ... If I stand all the girls will also stand ... Girls are the ones who suffered the most.' [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Eighteen-year-old Susan's schooling was interrupted for a year because of the conflict. She faces many challenges in pursuing her education, including a lack of support from her parents. 'Nobody can help you with homework at home,' she says. 'My parents are not educated.' But Susan dreams of one day becoming the Minister of Education. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Viola and Susan, both 18, and 16-year-old Diana are mechanical engineering students at Juba Technical School. 'We feel very proud as women,' they say as they describe their experience of being female students in a classroom dominated by males. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Books and papers lie out to dry in an empty classroom at Lighthouse International, a private school in Juba temporarily closed due to flooding. It is estimated that one in three schools has been destroyed, occupied, or closed in South Sudan. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Melanie, 14, sings as part of a choir for vulnerable girls. She first came to Juba with her mother when she was seven years old to sell brooms. But her mother turned to sex work and Melanie was found by a local orphanage where she now lives with her three brothers and sisters. When she grows up she wants to be a photographer and to care for her siblings. 'I'm here to study and get a bright future,' she says. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Nyadak Kuony, 30, is an unpaid Arabic teacher at the UN's Protection of Civilians site in Juba. She received teacher-training in Khartoum, but has no education in English so is attending adult literacy classes. Nyadak is one of many teachers who are either unpaid or underpaid. The average teacher salary around 900 South Sudanese pounds a month (about $30), less than a street cleaner.'I want to be a soldier … I want to protect my country,' she says. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Alisa, 17, builds a table during her carpentry class at Juba Technical School. There are five other girls in her class. 'I want to build my country to be a good nation,' she says. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Jehan, 21, holds her newborn baby daughter at the Juba Teaching Hospital after giving birth by caesarean section. Jehan was studying economics at Juba University but was forced to leave because she was pregnant. According to Judith, a nurse at the hospital, many female students hide their pregnancies in order to stay in school and resort to starving themselves to appear smaller. This can lead to complications during their pregnancies. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Gladis, 25, stands in her outdoor classroom at the New Rambur child friendly space on the outskirts of Juba. The school hosts displaced communities from the Dinka tribe who have fled fighting in the north. Gladis has a high school education and is among the 12 percent of South Sudanese teachers who are female. She is paid around $30 a month. She explains the difficulties of retaining female pupils – some must travel long distances, when they get their periods they will not come for days as they cannot afford sanitary pads, and then there is the stigma attached to girls who have an education. 'If they've gone to school they are spoiled for marriage, not as pure,' she says. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

Amijong, 14 and Arek, 11, in their classroom at the New Rambur child friendly space. 'We want sports clothes. We have only one clothes to study in,' says Arek. 'Coming to school is very difficult because of hunger. No breakfast, no lunch, and only sometimes supper,' says 15-year-old Abul from Bor. [Sara Hylton/Al Jazeera]

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