Role of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Enhancing Food Security: A Case of Association of Christian Resources Organizations Serving South Sudan (ACROSS) - Pibor County, Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA), South Sudan

Abstract

The study assessed the role of NGOs in enhancing food Security in Pibor County with specific reference to the Association of Christian Resources Organizations Serving South Sudan (ACROSS). The study aimed to establish the status of food security in Pibor County, to investigate the contributions of food aid to food availability, and to examine the contribution of microcredit to food access in Pibor County. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design, utilizing both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection and analysis. Based on the population census report of 2008, a study population was established against which 10% of the accessible population was considered to yield a sample of 120 respondents obtained using both simple random and purposive sampling techniques. Surveys, interviews, and observation constituted the main methods of data collection. Data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel, as well as the content analysis method. The study established that 50% of households in Pibor County were marginally food secure and the rest were food insecure with varying levels of food insecurity. This implies that the ACROSS’s interventions had not yielded significant results for food security in Pibor County. It was also established that 54.2% of households enhanced their food availability and household meal frequency with the help of food aid, thus, improving their nutritional statuses. It was further revealed that 44.2% of households that had access to microcredit improved their income levels during unfavorable seasons. Findings further revealed that access to microcredit alleviated capital constraints on agricultural households, hence enabling poor households with little or no savings to acquire agricultural inputs and higher-yield technologies that increased labor productivity. The study recommended that NGOs [the ACROSS] and the Government of South Sudan through the National Ministry of Agriculture and food security should formulate policies that regulate short-term food aid, establish government microfinance institutions to ease access to credits, and set up agricultural training centers to enhance citizen’s knowledge and skills in modern farming to alleviate food insecurity in the Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA).