The South Sudan School Report

life of helping continues across the worlds.

Students lineup in front of the new school

Paul Atanay setting up a denoted telescope

I traveled to South Sudan on the second week of February 2025 to distribute sports equipment, telescopes, microscopes, maps, and globes that you the Good Samaritans donated. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your generous support. The kids were excited to see the soccer balls and other sports gear. They wasted no time but headed to the soccer grounds.

I asked a friend to take pictures of kids playing soccer, but he unfortunately didn't know how to operate the iPhone. He thought he recorded a video but did not. The two schools, Lorege Primary and Piobokoi Primary Schools had a total enrollment of over 600 students each, including two nurseries. has 20 teachers. Nine teachers are on the government payroll and have not been paid for over 15 months. Eleven (11) teachers are volunteers. Despite the challenges faced by the teachers, they continue to devote themselves to teaching. The students are learning useful skills. I took it upon myself to randomly test pupils reading skills (Grades 2, 5, and 8). Grades 5 and 8 pupils excelled in reading skills. Grade 2 pupils' reading skills were poor.

Nine teachers are on the government payroll and have not been paid for over 15 months. Eleven (11) teachers are volunteers.

Teachers in both schools had not been paid for over 15 and 24 months. The teachers, the students, and the community have been left to their own devices. A trained teacher is paid an average of 67,000 South Sudanese Pounds per month—a sum equivalent to 12 USD. The monthly salary cannot sustain a family of one let alone a large family. A teacher would have to work three months to afford to buy 50 kilograms of maize flour to feed their family. The situation is dire and pathetic!

I asked her another question: "On a personal level, what would motivate you to come and teach daily?""

Her answer: "If I could get help, say, to buy soap to wash my child, to buy food to feed my family, I would not miss a single day to come and teach."

If I don't volunteer to teach, who will? They are our children. The government has abandoned us.

BOTTLE DRIVE

Charity work to help the unfortunate.

In my efforts to help the children out I am collecting bottles, cans, and anything that can be recycled to raise money. Using funds from the bottle drive, I purchase essential supplies—corrugated iron sheets, cement, timber, nails, and more—to build durable concrete classrooms. This isn't a temporary fix; it's a sustainable model where every brick laid is a commitment to the future of our children.

Join me in this grassroots movement by supporting my cause and purchasing my books, with proceeds reinvested into these school projects. Together, we can change lives—one bottle, one brick, and one classroom at a time. Get in touch with me to learn how you can help.