Who We Are

South Sudan is losing the fight against illiteracy, wars and poverty. If country has more than seventy percent illiterate population, engulf in an unending civil war, and its people live in the middle of extreme poverty, and no concrete action being taken to avert these problems than it is giving out all its potential human power to these anti-development factors. While South Sudan was a part of Sudan, its citizens were deprived of access to education. After separation from Sudan in 2011, it falls into civil war that has ruined almost all states. While we agree that all states were affected by the 2013 crisis, greater upper Nile states were the most affected. This leave these states with no basic services: food, health, and education.

To address these problems stated above, the need for opening more schools in Malakal and areas surrounding is unquestionable. More than eighty percent of children age six to fifteen can’t read or write, more than eighty five percent of the youth have not reached secondary school level or haven’t completed high school diploma, only very negligible number of children who are under sixteen years can write and read, and very few youth have high school diploma.

To fuel the problem of illiteracy, few remaining schools are extremely overcrowded; the shortage of teachers is another problem that need a very urgent attention as it is obstructing the smooth operations of these schools.

Becoming more concerned than ever before by the suffering of out of school children and jobless graduates, I felt that it is high time to not wait as there will never be any right time to rescue these children other than this difficult time of crisis.Having also endured and experienced wars’ consequences from previous conflicts of 1983- 2005, I could imagine the daring situation our people are going through. The life they are going through is very difficult that it calls for anyone with any capacity to make difference in their life by doing something to rescue this generation. The situation caused by war in South Sudan and in Upper Nile State is agonizing. A lot of civilian lost their life during the conflict; majority of those who survived the war woes have been displaced from their home to Protection of Civilian (POC), IDPs camps with in South Sudan, or escape to neighboring countries. State infrastructures such as individual residences, schools, hospitals, and government offices were destroyed.

Enduring these problems from 2013 to present together with IDPs in POC forced me to think of what I can do at my level as son, brother and father of these people who are suffering in POC and Malakal town to do something about their daring condition. As someone that been in teaching profession for a while and with school management background plus being advantaged to be working for UN during this difficult time, I thought, well, there is need for me to step in and use these skills and resources where necessary to help them in some ways. Whether this mean giving all my salary to this cause, if that can put smile on the kids’ face then I am more than willing to always give all my salary.  

Without hesitation, I put into this project all my capacity- both the resources and knowledge and this included the renovation of three teachers’ offices, renovation of six classroom blocks, payment of monthly incentives for twenty-six personnel (teaching staff, administrative Staff, and labourer), helping teachers with lesson deliver (teach math and Physics), and finally acting as an advisor for the school headmaster.

Becoming empathetic about the inflicted suffering caused by war and poverty on our children and jobless graduates compelled me to undertake the project of establishing the school I called Vision Academy (VA). Vision Academy emerged at a time of real need, a time when the vulnerable children and communities in Upper Nile State need rescuers to stand by their side in solidarity.

VA has emerged as a force coming to break the generational chain of illiteracy, and the cycle of poverty, and chant away chronic tribalism by nurturing the power of untapped wisdom in our youngsters and equipping them with the right skills, knowledge, and values that would change their attitudes to become entrepreneurs and leaders of tomorrow that will lift South Sudan out of extreme poverty and propel the needed development.

To accomplish that dream, it is in Vision Academy’s best interest and its top priority to advocate for teachers’ better working conditions and attract and retain teachers. So, persuading teachers back into the teaching profession to Vision Academy is equally as important as giving education access to at-risk children. Besides, campaigning for illiteracy eradication, Vision Academy will always advocate for the rights of the voiceless group it is representing. This group include vulnerable children, at-risk youth, and teachers.