Canada announces funding for projects in South Sudan 

Canada has announced $223.4 million in funding for development and humanitarian programming in South Sudan. This funding is being distributed as follows.

Fortifying Equality and Economic Diversity for Resilience: $39 million—World Vision, Care Canada, War Child consortium

This project supports reducing gender inequality in food production, consumption and marketing. It will provide training (including on natural resource management, food preservation and business skills), distribute agricultural inputs and engage with the community to prevent gender-based violence and promote gender equality. Expected results include (1) improved participation of women and girls in managing common challenges to food security, (2) improved use of female-friendly agricultural and business practices that promote sustained income generation and management of natural resources and (3) equal and safer environments for women’s leadership within their communities.

Building Resilience Through Safety Nets: $41 million—World Food Programme

This project provides short-term food or cash assistance to help households meet their immediate needs as they work on community assets that enhance resilience to climate-related shocks and build their longer-term food security. Expected results include (1) reduced short-term food gaps for women, households and communities, (2) enhanced capacities of women, households and communities to adapt to climate shocks and stressors and (3) increased power for women and girls in decision making regarding food security and nutrition in households, communities and societies.

Investing in Women in South Sudan: $12 million—Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund

This project aims to enhance the economic empowerment of women in the agricultural sector in South Sudan through (1) reducing gender-specific barriers to women’s participation in agricultural value chains, (2) increasing the adoption of gender-sensitive climate-smart agricultural practices and (3) improving employment or livelihoods for women in agriculture and food systems. Working with women-led and civil society organizations, the Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund will provide financing and technical assistance to small and medium-sized enterprises and women’s entrepreneur associations to provide meaningful employment opportunities for women in the agricultural sector and to deliver products and services that economically empower women in agriculture value chains in South Sudan.

Support for the Health Pooled Fund: $68.5 million—United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

This project aims to improve the health and well-being of the population in 8 of South Sudan’s 10 states. Canada’s contribution to the Health Pooled Fund (HPF) helps ensure that quality health services, including sexual and reproductive health services, are available in hundreds of South Sudan’s health facilities and surrounding communities. Canada’s contribution also helps increase awareness of healthy behaviours and of women’s and adolescent girls’ sexual and reproductive health rights. This project builds on previous support of the HPF and is part of Canada’s commitment to improving global health and human rights.

Human Resources for Sexual and Reproductive Health: $37 million—UN Population Fund

This project aims to increase the health and the recognition of the rights of women and girls in South Sudan by increasing the availability of skilled health care providers, especially midwives, positively changing attitudes toward sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and gender-based violence (GBV) and supporting the government in developing and implementing SRHR and GBV policies.

Women’s Voice and Leadership Project Increase: $1 million—CARE International

This project is part of Canada’s Women’s Voice and Leadership Program, which supports local and regional women’s organizations and networks that are working to promote women’s rights and advance women’s empowerment and gender equality in developing countries. This is done by supporting women’s activities, building institutional capacity and promoting network and alliance building, as women’s rights and feminist organizations are critical agents of change. The program also responds to the significant, globally recognized gap in funding and support for women’s rights organizations and movements around the world.

Supporting Livelihoods for Agropastoralists: $4.15 million—Catholic Relief Services

Catholic Relief Services will implement this project, which will address the intersection of agropastoralism, conflict and food security with a gender equality focus integrated throughout all activities. The project will target cattle-camp communities in Lakes State along the border between Yirol West and Rumbek East counties. The project will target women and men 18 to 35 years old within these agropastoral communities.

Humanitarian Assistance: $20.75 million—Action Against Hunger, Concern, Médecins Sans Frontières, Oxfam Canada, International Committee of the Red Cross, International Organization for Migration, UNICEF, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, World Food Programme

This new funding will support the provision of food, nutrition, health, protection, water, sanitation and hygiene services to conflict-affected populations, including internally displaced people. This includes support for initiatives that address the specific needs of women and girls such as programming for sexual and reproductive health and rights and for protection.