Under the theme “UN for the People of South Sudan”, UNDP joined the rest of the United Nations family to commemorate its 71st anniversary together with local communities, government counterparts, civil society organizations, and development partners. Abalo Grace Odera, tailoring trainer in UNDP Vocational Training Center at Juba Prison explained during the event how the UN have changed her life.

UNDP’s Democracy Governance and Stabilization Unit works to support the establishment of conditions for peace and development in South Sudan. Today the team has provided a set of furniture to the newly formed Ministry of Federal Affairs (MoFedA).

The National Prisons Service of South Sudan, with support from UNDP, has established a well-equipped vocational training center at Juba Central Prison. In 2016, a first session of training was held from February to July. In the first session, 134 (10 female) inmates were trained in eight different vocational skills –carpentry, masonry, electrician, welding, vehicle mechanics, agriculture, hair dressing and tailoring – and are ready for graduation. A second batch of 143 (8 female) inmates has just started in the new round of training.

The United Nations Country Team in South Sudan, along with government leaders and other partners officially launched the Interim Cooperation Framework (ICF) at Juba Grand Hotel today. The Interim Cooperation Framework is the development strategy of the United Nations Country Team and functions as an interim framework in 2016 and 2017, which corresponds to the transitional period of the peace agreement.

The United Nations Development Programme welcomed Mr. Kamil Kamaluddeen to South Sudan as the agency’s new Country Director on Tuesday, 4 October. Mr. Kamaluddeen joins the South Sudan country office after a successful stint in Liberia.

The Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare, in partnership with the United Nations, held a two-day high-level dialogue to discuss the National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security. The dialogue featured national leaders from government, military, law enforcement, civil society, and the United Nations speaking on the theme, “Addressing Impunity on Sexual and Gender Based Violence in South Sudan.

Ms. Teresia Chepkosgei Kenduiywo and Ms. Alice Alego Matole, Kenyan veterinary laboratory technologists with two decades of technical experience, arrived at Juba’s Central Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory on October 2015, ready to mentor their South Sudanese peers on accurate animal disease diagnosis and effective laboratory management. Upon their arrival, both women were surprised to learn that the lab lacked something as essential as a microscope.

Under the theme “Together We Can Heal the Nation,” students from Juba Girls Secondary School, Juba Day Secondary School and Chinese Friendship School expressed their feelings through messages of peace performed in dramas, peace songs and a powerful poem during the celebration of the International Day of Peace in South Sudan which took place in Juba at Nyakuron Cultural Centre on 21 September 2016.

“I hope with this training I will get more knowledge and experience so I can contribute to the work that my local radio station is doing for peace,” expressed one of the participants of the Radio for Peace training organized by UNESCO and UNDP, in partnership with Radio for Peace Network (RaPNet), which kicked off yesterday in Juba.

The latest RSS/IGAD Regional Initiative Executive Board Meeting took place yesterday, September 20, 2016 in Juba, at the Ministry of Labour, Public Service, and Human Resource Development of South Sudan, where they discussed the progress, achievements, and next steps of the IGAD Regional Initiative.

The Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning met with UNDP today to discuss key priorities to achieve progress on national stability and sustainability. UNDP Acting Country Director Jean-Luc Stalon and Minister of Finance Hon. Stephen Dhieu Dau mutually agreed on the need to remain focused on economic stabilization and sustainable development initiatives.

Mr. Silvanus Odukis, a qualified Kenyan nurse-midwife, with over 30 years of experience in maternal care, knows the inherent challenges of giving birth in South Sudan, one of the world’s deadliest countries to give birth. The last national health survey, done in 2006, estimates that 2,054 deaths occur per 100,000 live births, which translates to one in seven women dying due to pregnancy related complications.

The Bureau of Religious Affairs and UNDP hosted a workshop for religious leaders to delve deep into the themes of the first-ever National Human Development Report (NHDR) for South Sudan. People, peace, and prosperity was on the day’s agenda as Muslim and Christian leaders presented Biblical and Islamic perspectives on the themes of the National Human Development Report and the pathway forward for sustainable development in South Sudan.

Last week, UNDP South Sudan office was full of young South Sudanese ready to work to make the difference in their country. They came to participate in the introduction workshop of the Youth Innovation Challenge for Peace, held on Thursday 25 August. The aim was to inform interested participants about the process, rules and characteristics of innovative ideas.

The overarching goal of UNDP’s Integrated Crisis Response Programme (ICRP) is to support recovery and stabilization and lay down a strong foundation for national reconciliation and sustainable development.

UNDP Administrator Helen Clark launched Africa Human Development Report 2016 at the Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD-VI) that took place for the first time in Africa, Kenya. According to the Report, Gender inequality is costing sub-Saharan Africa on average $US95 billion a year.

The UNDP South Sudan Acting Country Director Jean-Luc Stalon, accompanied by senior UNDP programme staff, recently visited Aweil State to consult with the governor and other key stakeholders on recovery and stabilization projects that would consolidate peace and stability in a state that has largely remained peaceful.