Data-Driven Decisions: Using Evidence to Improve South Sudan's Higher Education System
South Sudan's higher education system, though young, has witnessed growth. However, significant challenges highlighted in this Policy Brief require immediate attention.
A primary concern is the wide enrolment and faculty size disparity between public and private universities. Notably, in the academic year 2020/2021, public universities enrolled about 27,100 students with a faculty of about 2,620 members, while private universities enrolled about 5,130 with a faculty of around 463 members. The University of Juba exemplifies this disparity, enrolling 66% of all public university students in 2021. Discrepancies were also found between MoHEST data and the University of Juba records on student enrolment, highlighting the need for improved data collection and management across the sector.
This Policy Brief is based on the Demographics of African Faculty in the East African Community (DAF-EAC) study that was conducted in South Sudan and five other EAC partner states, specifically Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda, between 2021 and 2023.