Solidarity in South Sudan

Sister Gaudencia Nafula Wanyonyi is happy to share her first impressions of her new mission in South Sudan.  She writes:

“My first impression of South Sudan were crowds! Talking to some, l came to understand that they have a real desire for peace. They are so hungry for peace because many of them have never experienced it. They are a population of over 12 million in the world’s youngest country - it has only been a sovereign state since 2011, following decades of civil war and instability with Sudan.

Each person in South Sudan has his or her own day-to-day life and own story that is shaped by the world around them. Since 2013, only two years after independence, the outbreak of civil war in South Sudan has caused widespread displacement, human rights abuses, suffering and loss of life.  Poverty, inadequate infrastructure, food scarcity, economic inflation, unrelenting heatwaves and drought in some areas affect the country today.

I am delighted to be participating in an inter-congregational initiative of the International Union of Superiors General (UISG) and the Union of Superiors General. This initiative, called Solidarity with South Sudan, was founded as a collaborative organisation in 2008 - with its headquarters located in Rome. 

Its Mission Statement reads:

“Solidarity with South Sudan aims to create self-sustainable teacher training, health and pastoral institutions and programs that will help to empower South Sudanese people to build a just and peaceful society.  Solidarity is a collaborative commitment of religious institutes of men and women, members of the Unions of Superiors General and the Church in South Sudan working in partnership with the Sudan Catholic Bishops’ Conference.”

Programmes run by Solidarity include education, healthcare, agriculture and pastoral activities, each one implemented in an effort to build the capacity of the South Sudanese people to take full charge of the ownership of their country. In the healthcare sector in South Sudan, Solidarity has already made a significant impact by training 40% of the country’s trained nurses and midwives through the Catholic Health Training Institute.

Students come to Catholic Health Training Institute from every part of South Sudan because these projects are viewed as peacebuilding and reconciliation initiatives.  People are very hungry for education. For example, I met a woman, who is attending a residential nursing college, while her four children remain at home in another part of the country for the duration of the three-year programme. 

I will be taking over as a Principal Tutor in the Nursing and Midwifery School.  For me, this is already proving a very valuable lesson in stepping outside my comfort zone - allowing travel to take me somewhere I didn’t expect to go and to look at the world from a fresh perspective. 

In my new mission, I am part of an international, intergenerational, intercultural and inter-congregational community.  So far, so good!"