The youngest country in the world is South Sudan which is also unfortunately in the midst of experiencing one of the most brutal conflicts in the world as well. However when we compare what is going on in South Sudan to what is happening in the Middle East, the country has received very little media coverage. This hardly does justice to what appears to be one of the most intractable conflicts on the planet at the moment.
Children lost in the conflict
The conflict occurring in South Sudan has often purposefully targeted children says the UN, with more than 2 million people fleeing their homes. There are as many as 1.6 million people internally displaced inside South Sudan and as many as 600,000 have fled to neighbouring countries. Within South Sudan, 9,000 children have had to leave their homes and have become unaccompanied minors, separated from their families without anyone to look after them. In countries that border South Sudan there are approximately 31,000 unaccompanied minors.
Finding families is a major priority
Ensuring these children are reunited with their families is a major priority for Save The Children. The organisation has established a national programme that traces family members for reunification with the support of several other NGO partners. Staff members use a number of methods to achieve this goal including word of mouth, to locate separated children. There is also a confidential national database that is used to begin the process of finding families.
The children are very brave
Save the Children reunites families with their children whenever it is safe. If that proves to not be possible as a result of local conflict or inability to find families, children are then placed in appropriate care such as with foster families. The kids that Save the Children have managed to help have been incredibly brave and inspiring. You can help with the effort by purchasing a charity gift this holiday season from Save the Children and ensure this Christmas, a child who has lost their family will find them once again.
