“My name is Rev John, and I work with the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan to support our people as we try to beat hunger and work for peace. Right now we are busy taking food to people in lockdown, showing them how to wear masks and providing hand sanitiser, clean water and information about COVID-19. Long term, I help oversee peacebuilding workshops in areas destroyed by conflict. We provide counselling for those traumatised by war, teach negotiation skills, work to keep women and girls safe from violence and bring tribes together to plan for the future.

Food, water and electricity are all scarce where I live in Juba and I am currently recovering from malaria. By God’s grace I will continue my work, and I thank you for your gift.”

–Rev John Yor, General Secretary, Presbyterian Church of South Sudan.

"My home was destroyed in fighting between tribal groups who want control of land and livestock so they can feed their families. I live here now in a refugee camp with hundreds of others who ran from the fighting with just the clothes they were wearing. There is no running water or electricity in my camp. The COVID-19 restrictions and fighting are stopping food from coming in from Ethiopia. I am often hungry. I thank the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan so much for coming to bring food and teaching us how to stay safe during the pandemic.” 

–Ida, South Sudan.

The story of South Sudan

COVID-19 couldn’t have come at a worse time for South Sudan.

With a fragile government finally coming together after a seven-year civil war that killed nearly 400,000 people and decimated the country’s infrastructure, the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing conflict has left almost seven million people at risk of starvation.

Hundreds of people were killed and women and children were captured during recent outbreaks of intercommunal fighting, which is being fuelled by a local leadership vacuum and ongoing resource disputes (read more). COVID-19 is expected to further antagonise intercommunal relations.

Our partner, the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan, has played a critical role in negotiating peace during the ongoing civil conflict. Turning their attention to the crisis at hand, they are working with other church denominations to:

• Share critical health messages to stop the spread of disease, especially in areas where people have no television, radio or access to social media
• Distributing food packs to people who have lost jobs and income or are in lockdown because of COVID-19
• Distributing resources including masks, hand sanitiser and soap for communities at risk
• Preparing to recommence their peacebuilding work among tribal groups in conflict, as soon as it’s safe to do so

Pray for South Sudan

Rev John, from UnitingWorld’s partner the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan, writes:

Brothers and sisters in Christ, thank you so much for your love and prayers. My heart is breaking. Everywhere the news is bad, but we keep working for our people so they will be freed from hunger and the fear of disease. We are desperate to return to our critical peacemaking work as soon as possible – our future depends on it. Please pray for us:

• For families who have fled their homes and are living in refugee camps here in South Sudan and across the border in Kenya and Ethiopia. They have no education for their children and at the moment there is very little food
• For women and girls in camps who must walk a long way for water and risk kidnapping, rape and violence from tribal groups
• For our staff, who want to return to our peace making work, but who are struggling both with the immediate need to share health messaging among those without access to media, and with the personal economic impact of the lock down. Our team is at risk not only from COVID-19, but we live without reliable food, water or electricity in our homes and place of work.

** URGENT PRAYER UPDATE: Rev John Yor has transferred to Khartoum for medical treatment. Previously recovering from malaria, he is in very poor health and requires ongoing treatment for stabilisation.

Direct banking details

For direct banking, please arrange to deposit your donation into the following UnitingWorld Account:

Bank: Westpac – King St, Sydney NSW

Account Name: Uniting Church Overseas Aid Account

Account Number: 182657

BSB: 032-014

Description: South Sudan Appeal

On completion of your deposit, please forward an email to: info@unitingworld.org.au with the following details: the amount you deposited, to where you wish the funds be directed ("South Sudan Appeal"), to whom the receipt is to be made out to and the relevant contact details for the receipt (address and phone number).



Donations of $2 or more are tax deductible in Australia.

Privacy Statement: Your personal information will only be used for the purpose for which it was collected and will not be disclosed to any person, body or agency except where required by law. Click here to read our Privacy Policy. In the unlikely event of this appeal being oversubscribed or not proceeding to completion, donations will be applied to our other partners experiencing similar crises in Africa and Asia.