Ambassador Michael J. Adler speaks during the commemoration of IOM's 10-year Anniversary of Rapid Response Fund. November 2023. (Photo: Awan Moses/Eye Radio).

The United States Embassy in Juba is calling on the transitional government to dedicate resources to ending Gender-Based Violence and advancing gender equality in the country.

In a statement on the International Women’s Day, U.S. said it stands with those working to advance gender equality and supporting the rights of women and girls in South Sudan.

Washington said gender equality is reflected in its enduring foundational values that have driven its decades-long engagement with the people of South Sudan.

U.S. said it is upon the South Sudanese people and government to influence sustainable change and commitment to improving gender equality and protecting human rights.

The statement calls on the transitional government and civil society in the country to recognize that gender-based discrimination and actions that lead to GBV, including sexual violence, are formidable barriers to women’s full participation in society.

“The transitional government must dedicate resources to ending these abhorrent and harmful practices. Advancing gender equality requires collective action that ingrains human rights into the very fabric of society,” it said.

The embassy further said South Sudanese men and boys must recognize that their country can only thrive if women have equal rights and opportunities.

It said: “They must champion the rights of their female relatives, friends, and fellow citizens.”

On March 21, 2022, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan published a 48-page report that describes a hellish existence for women and girls in the country.

The report cited widespread rape being perpetrated by all armed groups across the country, often as part of military tactics for which government and military leaders are responsible, either due to their failure to prevent these acts, or for their failure to punish those involved.

“It is outrageous and completely unacceptable that women’s bodies are systematically used on this scale as the spoils of war,” declared Yasmin Sooka, chair of the UN Commission.

“Urgent and demonstrable action by authorities is long overdue, and South Sudanese men must stop regarding the female body as ‘territory’ to be owned, controlled and exploited.”