South Sudan’s Vice-President for the Gender and Youth Cluster, Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, has donated 5 million South Sudanese Pounds to the staff at the National Ministry of Youth and Sports.
On Tuesday, Youth and Sports Minister Joseph Geng Akech said Vice-President Nyandeng donated the amount during a courtesy call at the ministry.
Addressing journalists after meeting with Vice-President Nyandeng, Minister Akech said the money will be given to the ministry’s staff as directed.
He said support staff, including drivers and cleaners, are usually ignored, yet they are very key in any ministry’s operations.
“She (Nyandeng) gave a small token of appreciation to the support staff, 5 million pounds, which is important and huge in terms of transport allowance and other things. The success you see in these ministries is because of these support staff, who are usually not visible but actually doing a lot. The drivers, cleaners and all other people who are not visible,” Minister Akech said.
The minister revealed that Vice-President Nyandeng also had an opportunity to interact with the ministry’s top officials to understand their challenges.
He said the meeting was historical as staff had a chance to express their challenges, including the lack of resources needed to engage the youth in peacebuilding activities.
“This meeting is important, historic and a motherly visit. She came here to see for herself the working conditions of the ministers in the cluster but also to meet with the senior staff to listen to their challenges and aspirations.”
Minister Akech revealed that they briefed the Vice-President on their successes and challenges in the wake of the country’s current economic hardship.
He said the meeting also delved into how to transform the cluster ministries because of their critical roles in uniting citizens.
“As senior staff, we are pleased to receive the Vice-President, and this does not happen often. She toured offices of the minister and undersecretaries,” Minister Akech stated.