Lack of teachers has affected learning and pupil’s enrolment in schools of Lainya County in Yei River State, an official said.

Speaking to Radio Tamazuj Tuesday, the county education director, Tito Ben, said many returnees and internally displaced persons are returning home with the relative peace and stability, but pupils are still finding it hard to stay in classrooms due to the lack of teachers.

He said there are 12 functional schools being managed by volunteer teachers, adding that most of the trained teachers have deserted the teaching profession due to low and delayed salary payments.

“Currently, we have 12 primary schools that are functioning. In first term, we had 1,383 pupils and in second term there are 1,848. This increase is due to the coming of returnees,” Tito said.

Esther Jokudu, a primary seven pupil at Lainya Primary School, said lack of scholastic materials and teachers in many schools has discouraged pupils from going to schools. She further said many pupils stay home due to lack of teachers.

“We don’t have books, bags and chalks in the school. If we are lucky, we may have one lesson per day and if not, we may go home without a lesson. We lack teachers and we are being taught by some volunteers who report to the school at their own will,” Jokudu said.

She added, “We are urging the government to deploy more trained and government paid teachers and also provide scholastic materials so that many pupils can return to class”.

Lainya County is one of the areas affected by the country’s civil war in 2016.

South Sudan has one of the highest rates of illiteracy in the world, a high proportion of children are out of school.