Armed conflict and violation of children’s rights to education in western Equatoria State, South Sudan

Abstract

The study examined the impact of armed conflict on children's education in Western Equatoria State, South Sudan. The study objectives were: i). to determine the drivers of armed conflict in Western Equatoria State, South Sudan. ii). to examine the impacts of armed conflict on school enrolment in Western Equatoria State, South Sudan. iii). to assess the effects of armed conflict on school dropout in Western Equatoria State, South Sudan. The study employed a cross-sectional survey design and a mixed approach in data collection. Accordingly, data collection was through the use of questionnaire and face-to-face interview. Data analyses relied on data collected from 382 respondents and 18 key informants. Furthermore, the study was guided by the Conflict theory. The theory focuses on social inequality and the competition between groups within society over limited resources as the main source of conflict. On the first objective, the findings reveal that the main drivers of armed conflict in Western Equatoria State are: marginalization of minority ethnic groups by major ethnic groups, domination of government positions by few elites, high unemployment rate among the youth, nepotism and tribalism in government, corruption, and lack of political will. On the second objective, it was found that armed conflict affects school enrolment due to destruction of school buildings, killing of school children, kidnapping of children from schools, rape and sexual assault, insecurity at school, lack of teachers and lack of teaching and learning materials. On the third objective, it was found that armed conflict contributes to school dropout. The fear of recruitment by armed forces and armed militia groups, insecurity in school created led to mass dropout of children from school. In some cases, schools were closed or used as camps for combatants. Conclusively, this study shed light on the armed conflict that engulfed South Sudan since December 2013 and its consequences on education, particularly on secondary school enrolment, retention, and dropout, caused by interrelated causal factors that included power struggle, ethnic loyalty and instrumentalization of ethnic identities, corruption, patronage, lack of inclusiveness and participatory state apparatus, and lack of commitment towards nation building among others. The conflict has an overriding implication on the country, including devastation of the educational system and infrastructures. Precisely, it hampered school enrolment and retention, while causing high rate of school dropout in all educational levels in the country.