Every day has a different story, and as each day comes, it’s always exciting to see what the day has got for me. My childhood feels like a collection of stories, shaped by culture, community and school. I grew up in a society where education, especially for girls, wasn’t highly valued. Girls were not taken to school at all, maybe later at an older age, or only for a short time. They would get married on any day as soon as they had reached puberty. I come from an extended family with 23 siblings. Providing education for every child was not easy. I have many brothers, and in my culture, boys were prioritised, and girls’ education was seen as unnecessary. This often means girls have fewer opportunities to be taken to school. Adding to challenges, my father, as a community leader, was expected to secure wealth through the marriages of his daughters, because the society expects daughters of chiefs to be married with a lot of cows. Before I turned 5 years old, I wondered if I was really going to be taken to school, with all that culture resonating around me. One day, I told my father, “I want to go to school.” He said, “You will go to school, but go to learn, not to disappoint.” I promised I would, and he promised to take me to school when I was old enough.

“I want to go to school.”

I was lucky to be among the first girls in my community to be taken to school at a young age and be given a chance to dream big. In 2012, I joined Loreto Primary School when I was nine years old, together with my brothers. I lived near the school, so I didn’t have to walk a long distance like the other kids. This wasn’t so exciting for me because I had wanted a long walk as the others did, thinking it was fun. Most students came late to school, while I came first each day. Later, I realised the advantage of staying nearby, making it easier to focus on my education. Because of the culture and the community, we had only a few girls in school. That affected me very much as it was difficult to find friends. Although there were boys, the culture doesn’t allow different genders to have a bond of friendship. Of course, I had teachers and other students who helped me through hard times. But I watched too many girls drop out of school, including my best friend and my eldest sister, who got married at an early age. I had no power to help because I was fighting for my own. Despite the challenges, I completed my primary level with a good score, and my dad saw changes in me. I was getting better each day, and he gave me all the chances ahead.

Finally, I joined Loreto Secondary School together with four of my classmates – all the other girls had already dropped out of school. Loreto is a boarding school, which I can say was a great protection for me from the norms of marriage. It was my first time staying away from my family and staying in a girls-only school. The first weeks were hard, but it was exciting too, because I knew I had overcome the challenges I would have faced because of the culture. And I was relieved because I knew now I could focus on my education without the worry of being taken out of school.

My high school life was an amazing journey as my teachers, the school family and my fellow students helped me to grow. I didn’t just learn academically; I also learned how to fight for myself in the right way. I discovered different cultures as we all came from different backgrounds and regions of South Sudan, and each person had an impact on me through behaviours, advice, and togetherness. We didn’t just learn in classes, we flew and still fly together. We adapted the motto “The Sky is the Limit.”

After four years of secondary school, I joined the internship program, and I was happy to work in the primary school as an assistant teacher. At first, I thought it would be my worst department because I grew up with some of the learners. Some of them were my age or not far from it. But it turned out that I was of great help to them because they knew me and would dare to talk to me anytime. It had such a huge impact on the students that I was familiar with them, so I could help teach them. Many of them told me they would want to be like me when they grow up, being resilient and hardworking. It inspired them that I never dropped out of school and gave up education, so they want to do the same – become an intern and go to university. I told them, “Education is not all about scores. It’s about what you take in. You have to stand up for yourself, believe in yourself and trust the process. Patience pays too.” Having worked in primary school has given me a chance to become familiar with dealing with children and the challenges they are going through. I tried to inspire them to be resilient, to never surrender, and to never use problems as an excuse for not doing their best. But what I learned is that the younger generation is inspired and willing to stand up for themselves and do better when they have the chance to go to school.

“The younger generation is inspired and willing to stand up for themselves and do better when they have the chance to go to school”.

Throughout my educational journey, I have been impacted by my parents, the school’s administration, teachers, colleagues, and every person I have come across. At times, I felt discouraged or uninspired when things got tougher, but I had everything that I wanted – the “CHANCE FOR EDUCATION”. The chance to access education kept me going. Witnessing the struggles and triumphs of the girls in my country motivates me every day to do more.

It has been a long journey for me, yet every day still feels like a new beginning. As I complete my two-year internship programme, I’m preparing to go to university to study a degree in mass communication, inspired by my passion for telling the true stories of my country.

Veronica Nyankueth Mangar

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