Sudan Schools Anticipate Referendum

Independent Films, Teens, Web Series

Though Southerners are not required to be in the south to vote in the the January referendum, many have decided to travel to various locations in Southern Sudan. Even so, after 20 years of civil war, the peace agreement signed in 2005 promted a spontaneous surge of returnees to the South, with many going back to their ancestral homes ahead of the vote.

With hundreds of Southerners travelling to different parts of Southern Sudan's ten States, schools have been emptied of students, suffering a decline of teachers as well. In this school, in Jabel Aulia, located in the outskirts of Khartoum, there are only a few students left.

SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Charles Jumaha, Education Officer, Comboni, Jabel Aulia Locality: "At the beginning the number of students was 265. Now they have decreased. The number of students at the moment is now 145 students. These are the latest statistics."

The Ministry of Federal Education helps this catholic church-run school by paying teacher salaries and helping with the development of the school curriculum. The catholic archdiocese started its involvement in various education programs in Khartoum State in 1986, offering education to displaced people in various locations.

SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Natal Joseph, Deputy Secretary Education Office, Archdiocese of Khartoum:"The plan is going on. We as a church are going to give the service to the present students, but the service depends on the desire of the students and the people. We do not like to close the schools – maybe the people will go and come back again. We do have another problem, every month the number of the teachers is decreasing. Most of them have gone back to the south after they received their salaries."

Transcripts / Production notes / Scripts

Though Southerners are not required to be in the south to vote in the the January referendum, many have decided to travel to various locations in Southern Sudan. Even so, after 20 years of civil war, the peace agreement signed in 2005 promted a spontaneous surge of returnees to the South, with many going back to their ancestral homes ahead of the vote.

With hundreds of Southerners travelling to different parts of Southern Sudan's ten States, schools have been emptied of students, suffering a decline of teachers as well. In this school, in Jabel Aulia, located in the outskirts of Khartoum, there are only a few students left.

SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Charles Jumaha, Education Officer, Comboni, Jabel Aulia Locality: "At the beginning the number of students was 265. Now they have decreased. The number of students at the moment is now 145 students. These are the latest statistics."

The Ministry of Federal Education helps this catholic church-run school by paying teacher salaries and helping with the development of the school curriculum. The catholic archdiocese started its involvement in various education programs in Khartoum State in 1986, offering education to displaced people in various locations.

SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Natal Joseph, Deputy Secretary Education Office, Archdiocese of Khartoum:"The plan is going on. We as a church are going to give the service to the present students, but the service depends on the desire of the students and the people. We do not like to close the schools – maybe the people will go and come back again. We do have another problem, every month the number of the teachers is decreasing. Most of them have gone back to the south after they received their salaries."

Tags

• Sudan
• Khartoum
• Catholic School
• referendum

Directors:

• Tom Osborne & UNTV

Producers:

• Muhamed Sacirbey