JRS has been present in Sudan since 2006 when it started working in the town of Mellit, North Darfur, to address the educational needs of internally displaced persons (IDPs) fleeing the Darfur conflict. Recently, a pilot education project has been set up in the capital, Khartoum, to address the educational needs of urban IDPs and refugees residing there.
Conservative estimates by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) suggest there are nearly three million IDPs and refugees residing in Sudan, mainly from the Darfur region, Eritrea and Ethiopia.
JRS educational support in Khartoum centres on a pilot programme at one primary school implemented in partnership with the Commission of Voluntary and Humanitarian Work (Khartoum) and Ministry of Education, funded by the Catholic Children's relief agency in Germany, Kindermissionswerk. The project takes a community-based approach to build the management capacity of the school and also provides hygiene packs for girls, textbooks, and other school materials.
In Darfur, JRS provides adult literacy and vocational training, particularly to internally displaced women in vulnerable circumstances. Teams also provide support through the construction and renovation of school facilities, teacher training, strengthening parent-teacher associations, granting educational materials and water storage facilities.
Eastern Africa
Regional Office
easternafrica@jrs.net
+254 20 3874152
http://www.jrsea.org
Eastern Africa is one of 10 geographic regions of the Jesuit Refugee Service, an international Catholic organisation founded by the Society of Jesus.
In eastern Africa JRS is currently implementing 13 projects in Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda, reaching out to over 105,000 refugees, internally displaced persons and returnees. JRS Eastern Africa provides education, psychosocial support, pastoral care, peace-education, livelihoods services and emergency relief and is involved in human rights protection and advocacy activities on different levels.
Altogether, there are over eight million refugees and internally displaced persons in the whole region, including Somalia.
JRS started working in Africa in the early 1980s. One of the earliest commitments was in Ethiopia, providing food, shelter and medical aid to thousands of people displaced within their own country by war and famine.
In the early 1990s the JRS Eastern Africa region was established with the regional office based in Nairobi, Kenya.
In 1992 one of the biggest and longest serving JRS projects was set up in Adjumani, northern Uganda, assisting Sudanese refugees mainly through education and pastoral care. It was closed in 2008, after 75 schools were handed over to the government and most of the refugees were repatriated to Southern Sudan, now helping to rebuild their country, with the skills they gained during their exile in Adjumani.
Today, JRS's biggest operations in eastern Africa are in Southern Sudan, providing support in education, peace-building and pastoral accompaniment.
Sudan: bishops call for action to ensure stability and peace
Juba, 22 July 2010 – At the end of an Extraordinary Plenary Session, the Catholic Bishops of Sudan urged all persons of good will to take action to prevent further conflict and suffering in the country.
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Sudan: violence puts stability at risk On 9 January, the UN peacekeeping force in Sudan, UNMIS, voiced concern over the recent escalation of violence in Southern Sudan.
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Sudan: registration deadline for elections extended On 23 November, the National Elections Commission announced an extension to the deadline for voter registration and postponement of the election date due to delays incurred in the process in some areas of the vast country.
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