The vast majority of the population of South Sudan lacks access to essential education, health, nutrition, safe water, and sanitation services. In close collaboration with local institutions, international organizations and NGOs, the Italian Development Cooperation (IDC)’s intervention focuses on priority sectors such as education, health and urban development.

Education The IDC facilitates access to education, especially focusing on the primary education where, jointly with UNOPS, it contributes to increasing primary school enrollment and attendance, with a specific attention to girls, in Lakes State and Eastern Equatoria. The project also includes the construction, rehabilitation and equipment of 18 schools, teacher training and establishment of parents and teachers associations (PTAs). A new project, implemented by AVSI, will support access to primary education in the County of Ikotos and Torit.

Health The IDC devotes particular attention to the health sector through different channels, focusing on maternal health’s improvement and child mortality’ reduction. The IDC implements on its own a 3 million project for the development of health services in the Lakes States and carries out a trilateral initiative, together with Egypt, for the training of South Sudanese nurses and midwives. The IDC has implemented capacity building programmes and provided support to Rumbek and Lui Hospitals for years, both through direct support and NGO interventions. Italy also supports, through UNICEF, an HIV immunization and maternal & newborn health care program.

Rural development In the rural development sector, Italy is working for improving the agro-food marketing in the city of Juba, promoting peri-urban agriculture, marketing and quality control and has constructed the new covered market. Italy will also support a rural and social development project, implemented by CEFA, in three counties in the Lakes region.