South Sudan plans for climate-resilient schools

Some schools relocate up to three times a year to escape the effects of climate change. The Climate Smart Education Systems Initiative is helping the sector prepare.

“Earlier this year, we had to close down schools,” says Owiri Angelo De Orubo, the Country Education Director in Kapoeta South. 

He has witnessed firsthand how climate shocks are straining South Sudan’s education system, from rising temperatures and drought that keep learners out of school, to soil erosion and flooding that damage facilities. “This has especially affected our girls from attending school. When schools close because of heat, we see early child marriage and child labour,” he says. 

His concerns echo those of many education officials grappling with an increasingly erratic climate across South Sudan’s states and administrative areas. Some schools even move their learners multiple times a year to escape the effects of heavy rainfall and flooding. But Angelo and other educational planners and managers are starting to see a glimmer of hope as planning for a climate-resilient education system takes shape.

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