• Field visits to Aweil, Torit, Rumbek and Yambio were carried out. • Ratings scale: The ICPE used the IEO’s rating system to score the country programme performance against the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) criteria of Relevance, Coherence, Efficiency, Effectiveness and Sustainability (see Annex 8). The evaluation used a four‑point rating scale. The ICPE has undergone a quality assurance process, first with internal peer review at the IEO and an external reviewers. Thereafter, the report was submitted to the country office and the UNDP Regional Bureau for Africa and, finally, to the government and other partners in the country for review. This process was concluded by a workshop carried out through videoconference that convened the main stakeholders of the programme and offered an additional opportunity to discuss the conclusions and recommendations presented in this report. Due to the COVID‑19 pandemic, most members of the ICPE team were unable to travel to South Sudan. Observation of project sites and direct interaction with certain vulnerable beneficiary groups were therefore limited. To mitigate these limitations, the evaluation team was reinforced by one national consultant who was in charge of facilitating the data collection exercise and conducting phone interviews with community level‑beneficiaries. The ICPE also followed up with national partners by email to obtain more information and access studies and reports allowing it to draw on additional secondary data.
1.3 Country programme context The Republic of South Sudan became the world’s newest country in July 2011 upon gaining independence from Sudan.2 In the 10 subsequent years, the country experienced two periods of civil war (beginning in December 2013 and resuming in July 2016), each characterized by high levels of violence, a large humanitarian emergency and extensive damage to the country’s economy and social fabric. As a result of armed conflict, displacement, governance and economic factors, humanitarian aid needs have grown to some of the highest levels the country has seen. As of October 2021, an estimated 8.3 million people (74 percent of the total population) needed some form of humanitarian assistance (800,000 more people than in 2020)3 and an estimated 7.2 million (64 percent of the population) are considered to be facing acute food insecurity.4 Limited availability of and lack of access to health services have contributed to one of the highest under‑five mortality rates (96.2 deaths per 1,000 live births) and maternal mortality rates (1,150 deaths per 100,000 live births) worldwide.5 The country has 1.7 million Internally Displaced People (IDPs) within its borders and more than 2.3 million South Sudan refugees have fled to neighbouring countries.6 Women, girls and children make up the majority of those displaced and in desperate need of humanitarian assistance. Women and girls have been disproportionately affected by armed conflict, suffering sexual violence, abduction, forced marriage and other violations.7 In addition to facing structural and societal barriers to political and economic participation and equality, women and girls are also routinely subject to harmful customary practices, sexual violence and gender‑based violence.8
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United Nations Cooperation Framework for South Sudan 2019‑2021. OCHA. South Sudan Humanitarian Snapshot October 2021. https://www.unocha.org/south‑sudan. World Food Programme. South Sudan Situation report October 2021. https://www.wfp.org/emergencies/south‑sudan‑emergency. United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). South Sudan key demographic indicators. https://data.unicef.org/country/ssd. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). South Sudan Humanitarian Snapshot October 2021. https://www.unocha.org/south‑sudan. UN Human Rights Council, ‘Report of the Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan’, February 2021, pp. 13‑14. UNICEF South Sudan. Gender‑Based Violence Brief. December 2019. https://www.unicef.org/southsudan/media/2071/file/ UNICEF‑South‑Sudan‑GBV‑Briefing‑Note‑Aug‑2019.pdf.
Chapter 1. BACKGROUND AND introduction
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