Dr. John Garang Memorial University in Bor, Jonglei was announced to have reopened Monday after eight months of being closed due to the civil war.

Jonglei state government officials and the university’s newly appointed vice chancellor conducted the reopening ceremony.

University operations in South Sudan have been severely affected by the war. The Bor facility was looted by rebels earlier in the conflict with equipment including computers destroyed.

The university's new vice chancellor Professor Julia Aker Duany told Radio Tamazuj Tuesday that they are reopening only to allow students whose academic year was disrupted by the war to complete their examinations.

She said besides her there are six other lecturers in Bor. She asked students who fled the country to return to complete their examinations.

The reopening ceremony was attended by senior officials from both state and national governments, but only the Jonglei state government contributed to funding the university's restarted operations.

Jonglei state gave fuel and 40,000 SSP to the university, while individual donors gave over 40,000 SSP, six computers, and fifty mattresses.

The UN mission in South Sudan promised to repair cars that were destroyed and to renovate lecture halls.

Aker said the university turned to these donors after the national government failed to keep its promise of giving money to universities affected by the crisis.

Jonglei state information minister Jody Jonglei confirmed the state government's contribution.

“We well know that Dr. John Garang University is the national owned university but we just assist if we have to,” he said. “We can assist like transport and others things…Last year we offer accommodations to the University, so when came to the reopening of the University we in the state do help.”

The university is among seven operating in South Sudan that were founded in 2006 as the John Garang Institutes of Science and Technology.  They were elevated to university status in 2008.

Radio Tamazuj Photo: Students at Dr John Garang Memorial University in Bor.

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