In Maiwut County, a remote stretch of land in South Sudan’s Upper Nile State, a steady flow of refugees and South Sudanese returnees have crossed the Sudanese and Ethiopian borders to escape ongoing and increasing violence. The April 2023 outbreak of conflict in neighboring Sudan worsened an already-dire humanitarian situation in South Sudan, where food assistance and essential service operations are stretched to the brink. With an estimated nine million people in South Sudan—or nearly about 75 percent of the population—expected to require humanitarian assistance in 2024, the country is mired in a complex and deepening emergency that has displaced millions of people, destroyed livelihoods, and forced millions to the brink of starvation. Compounded by poor governance, climatic-related shocks, and a lack of infrastructure, the country continues a downward spiral of conflict and displacement.
The majority of arriving women and girls struggle to lead healthy lives and have limited-to-no access to hygiene products, including menstrual hygiene care. Nyajal, 32, is one of the many women who fled violence in Ethiopia and returned to South Sudan.
Nyajal returned to Maiwut County, sheltering in an overcrowded building established specifically for new arrivals. Without access to water facilities or hygiene products, women and girls here deal with monthly challenges during their menstruation periods. When Nyajal arrived, she only had the clothes on her back; she felt hopeless.
Primary TextI struggled every day to get food and items like soap, clothes, water containers, and dignity kits for me and my family because I was overwhelmed by financial constraints. I was concerned about my health and dignity as I was unable to take a bath. I felt vulnerable, helpless, and ashamed. - Nyajal
Strong menstrual taboos in South Sudan restrict the movement and behaviors of adolescent girls and women, hindering their ability to attend school, work, or participate in daily life.
With funding and support from USAID, Nyajal is one of 200 women and girls who has received dignity kits at the county’s Women and Girls Friendly Space managed by the Agency for Child Relief Aid—a local, South Sudanese non-governmental organization (NGO). Each kit contains essential items that women and girls need to maintain their personal hygiene and dignity, including sanitary pads, underwear, soap, a solar torch, a wrapper, sandals, and other basic necessities. The kits help women and girls meet their immediate hygiene needs while restoring their sense of self-esteem in the midst of an overwhelming humanitarian crisis.
Nyajal receives a dignity kit in Mauwut.
Aisha ACRA for USAID
Primary TextI no longer have to worry about managing my menstrual cycle in an unsanitary and uncomfortable manner. Having access to clean underwear and sanitary pads has empowered me to go about my daily activities of selling tea in the market with confidence and taking care of my children. - Nyajal
She now attends classes where she learns how to maintain hygiene and health and where to go for gender-based violence (GBV) services and referrals.
With support from the USAID/Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance-funded Rapid Response Fund, the Agency for Child Relief Aid provides emergency water, sanitation, hygiene, and GBV prevention and response services to conflict-affected returnees, internally displaced persons, and host communities in Maiwut County. The Rapid Response Fund supports local NGOs through grants that allow them to respond quickly to emergencies and builds their capacity to effectively respond.
In the face of the country’s worsening humanitarian crisis, South Sudan’s transitional government must ensure that public revenue is used to support women like Nyajal to lead healthy and safe lives. For more information on USAID's work to provide life-saving humanitarian assistance, please see here.