“The Government of the Republic of South Sudan and the state governments must take the initiative of talking to the Diasporas to return home”, said Nyikole James a returnee from Australia. “This will trigger most of the highly skilled South Sudanese to come and contribute in rebuilding the nation”.
He said the reason as to why there is an influx of skilled labor from the neighboring countries into the labor force is because the country apparently lacks enough skilled workers; however, there are actually many skilled South Sudanese in the Diaspora.
Nyikole sees his dream of being dynamic in his motherland coming true. Reducing the cost of living to raise the standard of living in South Sudan. Unlike the young persons whose interests are in the greener pastures elsewhere in the world, he stressed on the need to return to one's roots with resourceful ideas. “The only way I can pay back to my host country Australia for the educational support they gave me during my stay in refuge is by returning to my home country and helping in the development process”.
Currently, he works as an agricultural consultant at the German NGO Youth Information Center (JIZ) supporting agriculture in South Sudan. His intention is to commercialize agriculture in South Sudan.
In his private initiative, he runs a farm in Kajo-Keji county of Central Equatorial State, 75 miles south of Juba covering 105 acres of land, planted with maize and beans. The Kajo-Keji community has benefited from the agricultural farm. And yet they have embarked on clearing more land; they hope that by April 2012 the farm will be over 350 acres.
He believes that with collective support from the government, their contribution in terms of food production will have an impact on the economy of the country. The farm has provided employment benefits to fifteen permanent employees with a range of 30-50 casual labourers who come in when they are needed. “We have massive labour force that we are hiring from time to time and they get their income”.
In a related case, Emmanuel - a graduate of Northern Arizona University in the United States of America - returned to South Sudan in 2008. He became a role model when he started farming in Torit capital of Eastern Equatorial State. He used good methods of farming; planting cabbage, tomatoes and green vegetables; the women of the area began starting their own farms, which resulted in a change in the cost of living. However, Emmanuel got discouraged and gave farming a leave when uniformed men invaded his farm to take his harvest at the end of every season.
“The government should put resources to the grassroots to support development, not just in the capital but in the villages so that people can be productive in those areas. Thereafter, we shall look into our villages for food, not our towns. Support the private sector - which is the back bone of the economy worldwide - so as to see the changes. The government has mostly focused on the public sector for the past six years, now it’s time to try out the private sector”, Nyikole said.
In the past six years, South Sudan has been involved in importing both food and non-food items. Agricultural products brought from the neighboring countries have claimed most of the oil revenues. The un-demined land has kept people from farming in some parts of the nation, while others are occupied by pastoralists.
Yobu Annet is a journalist based in South Sudan. She was recently awarded an Edward R. Murrow Fellowship.
a global affairs media network
South Sudan Seeks Return of Skilled Farmers
December 14, 2011
“The Government of the Republic of South Sudan and the state governments must take the initiative of talking to the Diasporas to return home”, said Nyikole James a returnee from Australia. “This will trigger most of the highly skilled South Sudanese to come and contribute in rebuilding the nation”.
He said the reason as to why there is an influx of skilled labor from the neighboring countries into the labor force is because the country apparently lacks enough skilled workers; however, there are actually many skilled South Sudanese in the Diaspora.
Nyikole sees his dream of being dynamic in his motherland coming true. Reducing the cost of living to raise the standard of living in South Sudan. Unlike the young persons whose interests are in the greener pastures elsewhere in the world, he stressed on the need to return to one's roots with resourceful ideas. “The only way I can pay back to my host country Australia for the educational support they gave me during my stay in refuge is by returning to my home country and helping in the development process”.
Currently, he works as an agricultural consultant at the German NGO Youth Information Center (JIZ) supporting agriculture in South Sudan. His intention is to commercialize agriculture in South Sudan.
In his private initiative, he runs a farm in Kajo-Keji county of Central Equatorial State, 75 miles south of Juba covering 105 acres of land, planted with maize and beans. The Kajo-Keji community has benefited from the agricultural farm. And yet they have embarked on clearing more land; they hope that by April 2012 the farm will be over 350 acres.
He believes that with collective support from the government, their contribution in terms of food production will have an impact on the economy of the country. The farm has provided employment benefits to fifteen permanent employees with a range of 30-50 casual labourers who come in when they are needed. “We have massive labour force that we are hiring from time to time and they get their income”.
In a related case, Emmanuel - a graduate of Northern Arizona University in the United States of America - returned to South Sudan in 2008. He became a role model when he started farming in Torit capital of Eastern Equatorial State. He used good methods of farming; planting cabbage, tomatoes and green vegetables; the women of the area began starting their own farms, which resulted in a change in the cost of living. However, Emmanuel got discouraged and gave farming a leave when uniformed men invaded his farm to take his harvest at the end of every season.
“The government should put resources to the grassroots to support development, not just in the capital but in the villages so that people can be productive in those areas. Thereafter, we shall look into our villages for food, not our towns. Support the private sector - which is the back bone of the economy worldwide - so as to see the changes. The government has mostly focused on the public sector for the past six years, now it’s time to try out the private sector”, Nyikole said.
In the past six years, South Sudan has been involved in importing both food and non-food items. Agricultural products brought from the neighboring countries have claimed most of the oil revenues. The un-demined land has kept people from farming in some parts of the nation, while others are occupied by pastoralists.
Yobu Annet is a journalist based in South Sudan. She was recently awarded an Edward R. Murrow Fellowship.
