Time often appears to move at different rates. Looking back, a year can feel short when little is achieved and hoped for dreams are still out of reach. And the same year can feel long when enumerating the list of achievements and obstacles overcome.

The first 14 years of South Sudan’s independence from its northern neighbour, Sudan, have seen little progress. Criminality, frequent eruptions of localized conflicts, the impact of climate change, and opposition parties in government in a seeming stalemate continue to thwart dreams of peace and prosperity. Furthermore, having already endured a civil war of its own between 2013 and 2018, this newest country has since become a refuge for people fleeing war-torn northern Sudan as it reels from one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

On a smaller scale, the year since I last wrote (Christ Church Matters 52) about The Episcopal University in South Sudan was both long and short.

As I now write, The Episcopal University is getting ready to receive applications for its third cohort of students of Law and Theology. From the current total of 109 students, by September the University campus in the capital Juba is likely to be a busy place with up to 200 students working towards their university degrees. Some will be attending their BA classes during the day as full-time students. Others will join the new evening classes for mature students who are currently employed and want to upgrade their educational qualifications or begin a new career.

In 2020, the community of Rokon – a small town 50 miles northwest of Juba – donated 16 km2 of land outside Rokon town to build a central campus for The Episcopal University. TEU worked with an Engineering Ministries International to survey the site and to create a detailed master plan for one quarter of the site.

The first steps towards establishing a campus were finding water and securing the area with a substantial fence. Thanks to a generous grant, construction of the fence and gate and drilling of boreholes began in 2023.  On the 14th September 2024 the University celebrated the completion of the fence and gateway. Dignitaries from local, regional and national government, representatives from NGOs, businesses, other universities, and the Episcopal Church of South Sudan (ECSS) joined hundreds of people from the Rokon community to celebrate this milestone. As a gesture of confidence in future construction, The Chancellor of the University – the Most Revd Dr Justin Badi Arama (Primate of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan) blessed the Foundation Stone for the first building that will be built when funds are found. In decades to come, will Rokon be South Sudan’s Oxford – with a vibrant university at its heart? 

In the meantime, the University is planning a sustainable agricultural project on some of the land while we search for funds to begin building on the campus. Establishing a sustainable agricultural initiative will serve as a model for practical learning, research, and community engagement, integrating modern and traditional agricultural practices, fostering innovation and self-sufficiency while addressing food security challenges in the region. It will also contribute to the University’s journey towards financial sustainability.

One of the University’s unique propositions is to provide students with extra-curricular enrichment opportunities. This past year, select students attended a course led by an international team of experts from the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). Students learned about issues of human rights, sexual and gender-based violence, UN Development Goals, local ownership and sustainability, and community policing.

Other enrichment activities include a fitness club that meets outdoors (there is no gym!) at 6.30 am (to avoid the 35-40ºC heat of the day), and regular public lectures from renowned academics, educationalists and humanitarian activists. 

In 2024 the University benefited from a number of small grants enabling us to buy 27 laptops for students to use: very few students have laptops, and some don’t even have smart phones. The University’s modest library resources have been enhanced with a small collection of much-needed law books and a generous donation of over 400 theology books from colleagues at Durham University.

There have also been obstacles and challenges which have made the year feel short, with not enough achieved. The scaling down of USAID put pay to hopes of receiving major funding to begin building on the new Rokon campus. Financial challenges abound in a country with a collapsing economy plagued by corruption and poor governance.

The University has a portfolio of properties around Juba. Unravelling the complex contractual and legal histories of these sites is slower than we would wish. In years to come, the income from these properties will be a major plank in our strategy for financial sustainability.

Meanwhile, the University continues to seek partners who share the University’s vision for excellence and  accompany us on our journey towards sustainability as we strive to offer the best possible university education to the young people of South Sudan who will one day lead the world’s newest country into a future of peace and prosperity.

To find out more, explore the websites of the university (www.teu.edu.ss), of its UK partner (www.ecssup.org) or contact me (eeva.john@teu.edu.ss).

Dr Eeva John (née Lehtonen)
Vice Chancellor
The Episcopal University
Juba, South Sudan

POSTSCRIPT:

Bishop Keith Sinclair (1972, History) is setting up an alumni group to develop the partnership that Eeva has described. Please email him for more details. He and Eeva plan to have an online meeting in the next few months.