Displaced women and children in Nadiangere Payam|Courtes

A new national survey has revealed that children and women in South Sudan continue to face severe challenges in health, education, nutrition, and living conditions, raising urgent calls for increased investment in social services.

The 2025 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics in partnership with UNICEF, assessed conditions across more than 10,000 households nationwide, making it the most comprehensive dataset on women and children in the country since independence.

The survey highlights a severe education crisis, with only 42% of children attending primary school and just 6% reaching secondary school. Only 15% complete primary education, while learning outcomes remain critically low, as only 9% of Grade 2–3 learners can read basic text and only 11% demonstrate basic numeracy skills.

Child protection indicators remain alarming, with 43% of women aged 20–24 married before 18, and nearly 10% before the age of 15. The report also finds that almost 80% of children aged 1–14 experience violent discipline at home.

Malnutrition remains widespread, with 19% of children stunted, 17% wasted, and 20% underweight. Only 5% of children aged 6–23 months receive a minimum acceptable diet.

While there are modest improvements in maternal health, including 51% of births attended by skilled health workers and 62% exclusive breastfeeding in early infancy, significant gaps remain in antenatal care, with only 35% of mothers receiving the recommended four or more visits.

Access to basic services remains critically low. Only 56% of the population has access to safe drinking water, while just 3% have access to basic sanitation. Open defecation remains widespread at 79%, and only 6% of households have access to basic hygiene facilities.

The report also highlights deep inequality, with internet access ranging from 0.2% among the poorest households to 41% among the richest. Only 44% of households own a mobile phone.

Only 13% of children aged 2–4 engage in early learning activities with adults, while 37% are left alone or in the care of other children for extended periods.

The report shows a high fertility rate of 6.4 children per woman, alongside low awareness of HIV prevention among young people, with fewer than 10% able to identify two methods of prevention. Only 6% of adolescents were tested for HIV in the past year.

The findings show widespread gaps in access to basic services, particularly in education, sanitation, child protection, and nutrition.

Speaking during the release of the report, the Director General of the National Bureau of Statistics, Dr. Augustino Ting Mayai, said the data provides a critical foundation for policymaking.

 “For the first time since independence, South Sudan has nationally representative household data that clearly show the situation of children and women across the country. This evidence provides a strong foundation for better policies and more targeted investments,” he said:

UNICEF also warned that current levels of investment in key social sectors remain insufficient.

“The data clearly show the urgent need for greater investment in health, nutrition, education, protection, and water and sanitation,” UNICEF Representative in South Sudan, Noala Skinner, said.

The MICS 2025 report concludes that while some modest gains have been made in maternal health and breastfeeding practices, South Sudan continues to face deep structural challenges requiring urgent and sustained investment in social services.