A new women’s centre has opened in Aweil West County in Northern Bahr el Ghazal State, providing a space for women to access training, business support and programmes aimed at preventing gender-based violence.
The Neymlel Women’s Centre was officially opened on 9 September by Nicole A. Hofmann, Germany’s deputy head of mission in South Sudan, and Alice Oleya Jino, a programme manager at the European Union Delegation to South Sudan.
The centre was jointly funded by the European Union and Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the ResPEct project, which is implemented by the German development agency GIZ.
The facility was handed over to the Women Association of Aweil West at a ceremony attended by local government officials, community leaders, women’s groups and development partners.
Jino said the centre would provide women and girls with a safe place to access support and develop opportunities to improve their livelihoods.
Hofmann said the facility would help women develop their livelihoods, strengthen their voices and play a greater role in their communities.
Training and business support
The centre has three rooms and is intended to host training and other activities for women in Aweil West.
According to GIZ, women have so far taken part in seven business and financial management training sessions, five leadership and people-management sessions and seven sessions on gender-based violence.
The programme has also involved men in discussions about gender roles and responsibilities.
The centre will provide training in areas including entrepreneurship, financial management and leadership, while also supporting networking and community activities.
About 480 women have participated in training under the project since September 2025, GIZ says. Another 300 stakeholders and 420 young people have benefited indirectly.
The main beneficiaries are women from Gumjuer Centre, Gumjuer West and Meriem East payams, including Wedwil. Women from Meriem West and Achana payams have also taken part in the training.
Kenyi Mark Peter Luba, a GIZ field technical adviser, said the training carried out during the construction of the centre had helped women prepare to use the facility to develop their businesses and share knowledge.
Participants have received training in bookkeeping and financial record-keeping, while some have been introduced to digital tools to help them reach wider markets.
They have also been taught about pricing, business planning and managing income during periods of low sales. Organisers say better financial records could help some women gain access to formal credit.
The programme also aims to increase women’s participation in decision-making within their families and communities.
Tackling gender-based violence
The ResPEct project, whose full name is Stop SGBV: Respond, Prevent, Educate!, is a three-year programme with a budget of €8.26m.
It is funded by the European Union and Germany’s BMZ and implemented by GIZ as part of Germany’s wider programme to prevent sexual and gender-based violence in South Sudan.
The project supports counselling services for families, community awareness campaigns and programmes that encourage men to discuss gender roles and their role in preventing gender-based violence.
It also works with women’s groups to strengthen their links with one another and with local authorities. Selected groups receive technical and financial support for small projects focused on preventing and responding to gender-based violence.
Awareness activities are also carried out in communities and schools.
Germany provides development and humanitarian support to South Sudan in areas including local governance, rural development, water and sanitation, peacebuilding, gender equality and the prevention of sexual and gender-based violence.
The European Union supports humanitarian and development programmes across South Sudan.
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