Call for Proposals: Small Grants for Grassroots Peacebuilding in South Sudan

Call for Proposals: Small Grants for Grassroots Peacebuilding in South Sudan

Background & Context

The situation in Abyei has been characterized by the lack of an agreement on the final status of Abyei between Sudan and South Sudan since the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005, and South Sudan’s referendum for independence in 2011. The highly politicized environment, insecurity, and violent conflicts have created restrictions in ways that threaten UN programme delivery in accordance with the UN principles of neutrality, impartiality, and leaving no one behind.

At the local level, inter-communal violence between the Ngok Dinka and Misseriya represent the primary factor that has impeded stability, reconciliation, and recovery in the area. More recently the conflict in Sudan and Twic conflict with Abyei have exacerbated the humanitarian and situation in Abyei.

The lives of women and girls continue to be marked by violence and discrimination, including reports of rape and other forms of gender-based violence (GBV), women and girls face a host of protection concerns connected to intimate partner violence (IPV) in addition to child, early and forced marriages (CEFM), rooted in societal perceptions of women and girls as commodities and valuation of females in terms of the bride wealth (dowry), as revealed through other assessments.

The rationale behind the UN Joint Programme is that vulnerability and severe poverty and gender discrimination reinforce fault lines and act as conflict drivers between communities in the Abyei area.

Competition over natural resources, especially during migration season, is additional conflict trigger and often increases the risk of attacks targeted on women and children. The severe effects of climate change and the lack of interventions proposing mitigating these effects for the agro-pastoralist communities in the Abyei box further increase community vulnerabilities and compromise efforts to promote peaceful coexistence.

Rising youth unemployment is widely recognized as a concern in South Sudan and Abyei Special Administrative area due to prolonged civil conflict that disproportionately affected access to employment and business opportunities, particularly women and for the youth (15-35 years) who account for 72% of the population.

The conflict has destroyed many activities and depressed demand in the markets for products and services of micro and small enterprises (MSEs), hence worsening youth unemployment. For workers, the dramatic contraction of non-oil output, coupled with the conflict, reflects a loss of job activities and a breakdown in market demand. The growing youth unemployment in South Sudan, estimated at 18.8%, which is 6.5% higher than total active population and continues to put huge chokes that threat the consolidation of peace in South Sudan.

The war in Sudan is the biggest constraints to the lack of livelihood and economic opportunities for youth including lack of access employment and financial capital, education and training, market demand-driven skills, and scarce work opportunities.

For instance, 12% of the population depends on wages and salaries for their main livelihood and less than 4% of the population is engaged in entrepreneurial activities across South Sudan and Abyei Special Administrative area. High illiteracy levels among women (84%) and youth

(53%) make it difficult for women and youth to access business-related information, opportunities, and markets, while also creating a serious barrier to skills development, intensifying shortage in skills availability and labour market mismatch, aggravating unemployment rates, and ultimately undermining economic mobility.

Youth unemployment is both a cause and a consequence of fragility. With the growing number of returnees, estimated at 235,802 as of the end of 2019, the government is challenged to ensure that more South Sudanese are absorbed into the labour market. Experience in South Sudan has shown that where youth are engaged in productive undertakings, such areas do not experience widespread conflict.

Therefore, UNDP South Sudan seeks to address the issue of grassroots conflict to support communities to reduce violence and improve community security and strengthen social cohesion. The project seeks to select CSOs, NNGOs and CBOs based in in Abyei with demonstrated capacity to deliver inter-and-intra stakeholders dialogue and trauma awareness support to advance social cohesion and peacebuilding.

Objectives

The objective of this call for proposal is to facilitate local communities to engage in peace building, by promoting dialogue, mediation, and community interdependency initiative; supporting women and youth’s role in the peace process and strengthening communities’ social economic and cultural ties that support community relationships and build peace.

UNDP seeks to identify credible and capable CSOs and youth groups presently working in the identified conflict clusters to undertake some of the proposed initiatives in the call for proposal. UNDP also seeks the services of one international NGO with proven capacity to transfer skills to local CSOs as part of the sustainability of the project.

Main project initiatives include.

To support dialogue between various Ngok Dinka subsections on conflict issues cutting across various conflict axes and border communities, including peaceful utilization of resources,

To conduct women- and youth-led inter-and intra-communal and inter-generational dialogues to reach consensus on the types of initiatives both communities agree would have an impact on reducing conflict and violence,

To conduct awareness raising workshops, seminars and accompanying events promoting peaceful coexistence,

To support peace committees for conflict resolution and community stabilization initiatives.

Expected Output/ Deliverables

Some key outputs are expected:

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Call for Proposals: Small Grants for Grassroots Peacebuilding in South Sudan

Scholarship 2026/27

Scholarship 2026/27