Salesian Mission Supports Millions of Displaced People

Salesian Mission Supports Millions of Displaced People

South Sudan’s 15 years of independence haven’t gone well

(ANS – Juba, South Sudan – July 9, 2026) – The anniversary of South Sudan’s independence isn’t cause for celebration; it’s a wake-up call. South Sudan became an independent state on July 9, 2011, but the long-awaited peace hasn’t materialized for the majority of the population. Violence, internal conflicts, food insecurity, floods, and a lack of essential services have forced millions of people to flee their homes.

Salesian missionaries are supporting displaced and vulnerable communities in places such as Tonj, Maridi, Kuajok, Wau, and Don Bosco Gumbo in Juba, as well as in neighboring Uganda at the Palabek refugee settlement, providing education, shelter, vocational formation, child and youth protection, humanitarian aid, and peace-building activities.

Ara Tena, a volunteer with Misiones Salesianas, the Salesian mission office in Madrid, sums up the Salesians’ work in the country as a presence that combines emergency relief with development. Misiones Salesianas is currently active in South Sudan, both in the field of development and in the humanitarian sphere, she explains.

At Don Bosco Gumbo, the Salesians have for years been supporting people displaced by the conflict, providing shelter, food, basic services, and assistance to particularly vulnerable individuals, such as single mothers, orphans, and the elderly. In recent months, they’ve also stepped up emergency aid in the refugee camp. “We have just completed an emergency operation in the Gumbo refugee camp, where we distributed plastic sheeting to cover tents and food supplies, as part of the ongoing support we have been providing for years,” adds Tena.

Alongside this humanitarian response, development projects aim to reduce dependence on aid and create opportunities for the future. In the Tonj area, Misiones Salesianas works with particularly vulnerable rural communities to improve their nutrition thru sustainable agriculture. The initiative also includes awareness-raising activities on Hansen’s disease (leprosy) and a peace-building component integrated into all Salesian projects in the country.

In Tonj and Maridi, the Salesian presence is focused on providing technical formation for young women. A similar facility already exists in Tonj, while in Maridi there are plans to build and equip a technical formation center specializing in cooking, food preservation, sewing, and dressmaking.

For Ara Tena, this type of work addresses a clear priority. “We believe it’s necessary to empower women, especially economically, so that they can generate their own income and improve their social status,” she says. In a country where gender inequalities remain deeply entrenched, vocational formation can pave the way to self-reliance for women and families living in situations of extreme vulnerability.

In Kuajok, too, the Madrid mission office, together with the Salesians of Don Bosco-BOSCOAID, has developed inclusive, equitable, and high-quality educational projects as a driving force for development and peace-building. Furthermore, the Salesian projects include a scholarship program for children that will support a thousand pupils from 10 selected Salesian schools in the country’s most deprived areas.

For displaced or vulnerable young people, returning to school means regaining a sense of routine, protection, trust, and a future. And for communities scarred by years of violence, education represents an investment in peace.

“We understand that everything we do for peace and peaceful coexistence is fundamental, because South Sudan is a country that has never known peace,” Ara Tena emphasizes.

The crisis in South Sudan is also having repercussions beyond its borders. In Uganda, the Palabek refugee settlement is home to nearly 100,000 people, most of whom come from neighboring South Sudan. Many arrived after fleeing with nothing but the clothes on their backs, having lost family members, homes, schools, and livelihoods.

In Palabek, the Salesians don’t just run projects: they live in close contact with the refugee population, and their work focuses on education, pastoral care, vocational formation, the protection of young people, and community support.

Salesian missionary Ubaldino “Uba” Andrade, who has been supporting the refugees in Palabek for years, points out that war leaves behind not only material destruction but also deep wounds in people’s hearts. “War is a destructive experience. It destroys not only homes but also hearts. Everything’s left behind; everything vanishes from one day to the next,” he explains.

15 years after independence, therefore, this young country needs stability, protection, and a future for its people. In Tonj, Maridi, Kuajok, Wau, Don Bosco Gumbo, and Palabek, supporting, educating, and standing alongside those who have lost almost everything is also a practical way of building peace.

Source: Misiones Salesianas

Editor's note: Between 2008 and 2021, some 2 dozen Salesian Missioners from New Rochelle have served the youngsters and families of Gumbo (Juba), Maridi, and Wau.