Plan Sudan Annual Progress Report 2009

A YEAR IN

SUDAN 09 SUMMARY REPORT

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• 41% ofU.children under five years are underweight A. E.

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• Only 24% of the rural population has proper sanitation

EGYPT

LIBYA

• The ongoing conflict in Darfur has left an estimated half a million people dead and affected millions of vulnerable children

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• Creating opportunities for families to increase their incomes and food supply • Protecting children’s rights and supporting them in playing their part in the progress of their communities A girl has work marked in a classroom in Sudan.

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• Improving the quality of schools and education for children, and increasing adult literacy levels - particularly for women

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• Ensuring children and families have access to good health care, clean water and decent, sanitary facilities Ge

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• Supporting children and families affected by the conflict DIJBOUTI in Darfur

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Representative Office Plan Operations Programme Unit

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Our priorities in Sudan

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CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC

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GOOD REASONS why Plan works in Sudan

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SUDAN FACTS Capital: Khartoum Population: 38 million Language: Araic (official) Climate: In the north there is the very dry Nubian Desert; in the south there are swamps and rainforest. Sudan’s rainy season lasts for about three months (July to September) in the north, and up to six months (June to November) in the south. The dry regions

are plagued by sandstorms, known as ‘Haboob’ which can completely block out the sun.

In the northern and western semi-desert areas, people rely on the scant rainfall for basic agriculture and many are nomadic.

Economy: Rich mineral resources are available in Sudan including: petroleum, natural gas, gold, silver, chrome, asbestos, manganese, gypsum, mica, zinc, iron,

lead, uranium, copper, kaolin, cobalt, granite, nickel and tin. Agriculture production remains Sudan’s most important sector, employing 80% of the workforce and contributing 39% of GDP, but most farms remain rain-fed and susceptible to drought.

Despite natural resources much of the population remains at or below the poverty line.

“We have been making consistent and concrete efforts to promote children’s rights, gender parity and secure opportunities for our children, families and communities for improving their basic needs”” – Mutasim Elhag, Acting Manager, Plan Sudan Northern Programme

A YEAR IN

SUDAN SUMMARY REPORT

09

FOCUS ON: EDUCATING SUDANESE CHILDREN Our schools programme gives children and their communities the opportunity to play an active role in the running of their schools.

Together with Plan and our partners, they are given training and advice to support activities including building or repairing classrooms, health and hygiene promotion, professional training for teachers and raising awareness of child protection.

Plan’s education work also covers boosting standards in nursery education, supporting literacy classes for women, training in vocational skills and helping children to take part in community

SCHOOL FOR SALMA

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hen nine-year-old Salma started school recently, no one was more pleased than her older brother.

A new school block is ready to go

The Bigger Picture

Plan is working with children, families and whole communities to address the problems that Sudan faces. This report can only tell a small part of that story. As a further insight, last year we also: • Protected children’s health by helping 4,800 families to get clean water and decent sanitation • Kept children healthy and in school by working with the World Food Programme, the Red Crescent Society and communities to provide school meals for more than 24,600 pupils • Promoted employment opportunities for young people by supporting the building of workshops where they could learn skills such as auto-mechanics, masonry and welding • Protected children in Darfur by running training for 120 teachers on how to support children who are traumatised by conflict or face similar problems.

Your support as a sponsor is crucial to achieving these positive results. So on behalf of the communities, partner organisations, and most of all the children we work with – thank you!

“My brother keeps telling me that education is important and it guarantees our future” To learn more about Plan’s work in Sudan visit plan.org.au/ourwork/southernafrica/sudan

Produced for Srudan by the Australian National Office.

“My brother keeps telling me that education is important and it guarantees our future,” she says.

He’s right, of course. But for Salma’s brother the words have even more resonance because he dropped out of school before he could complete his education. Indeed, until recently, none of the children in Salma’s family were attending school.

Salma had never been. Nor had her two sisters.

Salma lives in Guli, a village in northern Sudan.

Families here are among the poorest in the country.

It’s been a challenge for the community to get even the most basic services, like clean water or decent healthcare.

For many parents, the most pressing need is to grow enough, or earn enough to feed their families.

It’s not apathy that keeps their children out of school, but poverty. Salma’s brother loved school and was keen to continue his studies, but he was forced to leave to work and contribute to the family income.

Low awareness Sadly, Salma’s parents could not see beyond the daily reality of making ends meet. They did not understand that in the long term, the skills their children learned at school could help them find better paid work and escape poverty.

“Since my parents were not aware of the importance of education, he did not get any encouragement,” says Salma of her brother.

She and her sisters faced different pressures. In parts of Sudan, teenage girls are more likely to be wives than students. A bride price is usually paid in

“It seemed unlikely Salma would go to school until a teacher came to visit her at home and explained that Plan was working with the local school to set up a club for children”

cows, making early marriage one of the few sources of income for the most vulnerable families.

It seemed unlikely Salma would go to school until Magida, a teacher, came to visit her at home.

Magida explained that Plan was working with the local school to set up a club for children both in and out of school. She asked Salma if she would like to join.

Community involvement Plan understands from long experience that education is the best way to lift people out of poverty in the long term, so as well as improving healthcare, water supply and income-making opportunities in communities like Guli, we promote education.

The children’s club is part of that. The club works by involving children in the way the community and the school is run - giving them a public voice to express their concerns and needs.

The club makes an important contribution to the progress of their school. Here, children raise issues concerning school, share their views and take practical steps to resolve problems – like nonattendance, for example.

“Our children’s club played a key role in my enrolment to school,” says Salma. Having joined the club, Salma and other members were able to persuade her previously reluctant mother to let her attend.

Starting school has given Salma a new lease of life. She’s now an active member of the children’s club, taking a special interest in education.

It’s given her parents a new impetus, too. As Salma grows in skills and confidence, they can see a different future for her. “I promise to put a part of my agricultural income to help Salma with the school uniform,” says her father. “Salma has a real interest in education and it is important that she receives all encouragement.”

Salma and her brother could not agree more.

Some names have been changed for child protection and privacy purposes.

plan.org.au