A doctor at the state hospital in Jonglei, Madol Kang says he has not received salaries for the last three months, and this has made it difficult for him to support his family.

Dr Kang said he is not able to live up to his family responsibilities due to lack of money, despite working as a doctor at Bor main hospital for over 3 months.

He said he can’t afford to educate his children anymore.

“How can I do my work and the government is not paying me for what I do? Delaying salaries affects our work because my children are in school and for three month now I did have not paid the first term [fees], and now its going to the second term,” said Dr Kang.

The Minister of Health in Jonglei state concurs, saying health workers at the main hospital in Bor are demoralized for having not been paid their salaries.

Dr. Angok Gordon says nurses are sometimes not in the wards to administer drugs prescribed by doctors.

He says the situation at the hospital will even be more challenging because the medical charity, MSF, has pulled out from Bor.

“As you know that there is hunger in the area, so the staffs are demotivated and that is a great challenge. If you go and ask, they [doctors/nurses] say that they went and look for something to eat, you know that I have not eaten last night, all those stories you know them,” said Dr Angok.

Dr. Angok says the delay in paying the salaries is a general problem for all the workers in the state.