The South Sudan government said on Wednesday it will be sending 150 teachers and school managers to China for training under the China-Aided Phase II Technical Cooperation Project of Education.
The first batch comprising of 65 teachers and school managers will depart to China on Friday this week to undergo training for a period of one month.
The remaining 85 teachers and school managers will travel to China in two phases.
Martin Tako Moyi, Deputy Minister of General Education and Instruction said they had appealed to several countries in the world to train their teachers but they failed to honor their requests.
“We have appealed to so many countries to train our teachers in their countries, so that they come back and train our tutors locally here, nobody has responded, only the people and the government of the People’s Republic of China,” Moyi said during the opening ceremony for the teachers’ training program under Phase II of the Technical Cooperation Project of Education in Rombur national teacher training institute in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.
He said that the Chinese government has demonstrated commitment to build the capacity of teachers and school managers that in turn will improve quality of learning in the youngest nation.
The training will be conducted in both Juba and Shanghai by Chinese educational experts from Shanghai Educational Publishing House.
A team of six Chinese educational experts are already in Juba to train some of the teachers at Rombur national teacher training institute.
“Those who will be studying here, you are not the first batch to come to this place, there was a batch before you and they dispersed, and I am proud and honored to say that there are three students who remained here and they are from Murle community,” Moyi said.
Kuyok Abol Kuyok, Undersecretary for the Ministry of General Education and Instruction, said that under Phase II Technical Cooperation Project of Education in South Sudan, they have managed to review and print textbooks in core subjects of English language, Science and Mathematics.
He said the textbooks have already been distributed to schools across the country.
“Through the project, we have also trained many students and learners in Chinese language at Juba Day Secondary School. The ministry has received requests from many schools for Chinese language classes, this is a demonstration of the success of this cultural aspect of the project,” Kuyok said.
Ma Qiang, Chinese Ambassador to South Sudan said South Sudan and China share similar historical experiences and common aspirations for development, adding that in the 12 years of diplomatic relations between China and South Sudan, the education sector has always been a prioritized area for exchanges and cooperation.
He noted that China has supported the construction of several primary and secondary schools, trained over 5,000 professionals in various sectors, and provided hundreds of scholarships for studying in China.
“The Phase II Technical Cooperation in Education in South Sudan, since it’s official launch two years ago has delivered over a million volumes of textbooks in the subjects of English, Mathematics, and Science,” Ma said.
He said over 600 teachers and school managers will undergo training program under Phase II Technical Cooperation Project in both Juba and Shanghai.
“The training component for teachers and school managers is very important for the China-South Sudan technical cooperation in education and is also a major content in the capacity building project under the Sino-Africa Cooperation Framework,” Ma said.
Xiang Zhengyu, representative of Chinese technical experts in South Sudan, said the training they will conduct will be about sharing ideas and learning from South Sudanese teachers.
“The program is not just a collection of courses and workshops; it is a platform for collaboration, for sharing ideas, for learning from one another, and for collectively elevating the standards of education across this nation. Our lecturers are not just here to impart information, we are here to facilitate the journey of self-discovery and growth for all the participants and ourselves,” he said.
Jiao Lin, representative from Shanghai Educational Publishing House, said the development of education is a very important part of every country.
“As one of the most developed cities in China and even in the world, Shanghai’s education quality has always been in a leading position. The training preparations for this project have absorbed our rich educational experience and the latest global educational achievements,” Jiao said.
The China-Aided Phase II Technical Cooperation Project involves drafting, printing and provision of textbooks for some primary and secondary schools in South Sudan, organizing capacity building programs for the teachers and the educational administrators, develop and provide an evaluation system for the usage of the textbooks, and also to dispatch Chinese teaching personnel to Juba to teach the Chinese language and also supply of other teaching materials.
