Cultivating Women Leaders

Women in South Sudan are among the least empowered in the world.  Very few receive any education, and most are married off at very young ages to men often many years their senior who frequently have several other wives.  As civil war broke out in late 2013, women were subjected to many forms of abuse and most of those who fled to Uganda and other countries were severely traumatized and in need of healing.  SSLCD board members who visited the Mungula and Olua settlements in 2014 and 2015, spent most of their efforts just helping the residents (80% women) return to some level of normal functioning.  In spite of the horrendous trauma they had encountered, we were impressed at how quickly they were able to resume normal activities.

At that point the refugee community faced a huge challenge.  Since the large majority of the households were headed by women, the roles traditionally filled by men, such as caring for animals and even building homes and other structures, had to be assumed by women.  We were amazed at how quickly women moved into these roles and how well they met the challenges.  Once they had done so, they had to figure out how to create a community that would work together to help provide basic necessities and respond to emergencies such as domestic violence, substance abuse, and conflict among neighbors.  With the advent of Covid, improved sanitation and protective masks also became necessary.  Violence in neighboring settlements with the native population made it clear that peace building with neighbors was also essential.

Women have shown that they can and will respond to all of the challenges of daily life even in areas where they have not traditionally served.  The next challenge before them is to lead their communities in envisioning their future and working to bring the vision to reality.  This may be the most difficult challenge of all.  The few men who are present in the settlements expect and are encouraged to assume these leadership positions.  The women themselves mostly defer to the men and do not see themselves as potential leaders.  Despite the many obstacles, the leadership of SSLCD both in the US and in the refugee settlements are committed to empower the women to move into top leadership roles.  We have reached the conclusion that this is absolutely essential both for the current refugee communities and for the nation to which they will hopefully return.