Awut Deng Acuil, the Minister of General Education and Instruction speaks to the press in Juba on 21st Jan. 2022. Photo: Charles Wote/Eye Radio.

The Ministry of Education and Instruction indicates that schools in the areas affected by conflict will still receive their free education grant, regardless of whether or not they have bank accounts.

Last month, the Ministry of Finance on the directive of President Salva Kiir released one billion South Sudanese pounds to support free education in the country.

The president ordered national and state authorities to fully implement the policy accordingly.

Guidelines for receiving the grant provide that illegible schools must submit enrollment data (Schools’ Attendance and Monitoring System) and provide a daily update on the attendance of pupils.

Other requirements include having a School Governing Body – the School Management Committees (SMCs), in primary schools and Boards of Governors (BoGs) in secondary schools, in place to manage the funds.

The public primary and secondary schools are also required to open a school bank account, where the money can be sent to, for accountability purpose.

However, the guidelines published on the ministry’s website indicated that “for schools affected by conflict, some of these hurdles may be temporarily waived.”