The Abyei Director of Education has decided to ban children from carrying mobile phones at primary schools. This comes after a meeting with concerned parents.

Authorities and educators reason that children might watch violent or harmful videos on their phones, and copy that behaviour. The head teacher of Agok B primary, Tor Nyol Biong, said that mobiles had been banned for children under 14.

He said pupils should not have access to “strange” videos when they were at a formative stage of their lives. The director of education in Abyei, Dominic Deng Longo, said some children were watching adult material on their phones, and parents had to play their part in making sure this did not happen.

A community elder in Agok, Monyluak Achuatwai, said that pupils were not concentrating on their lessons if they were making calls on their phones.

However, some children criticized the decision, saying that phones can make children safer because then their parents can know where they are.

But the community elder said that if parents had any urgent information, they should pass it on through the head teacher.