President Salva Kiir and Minister of General Education, Awut Deng during the official start of the 2020 Certificate of Secondary Education Examinations at Juba Day Secondary School on Monday, March 22, 2021 Credit | Office of the President

Esteemed candidates,
Teachers across the country,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Good morning;

I am very excited to be with you this morning to ring the bell that symbolizes the beginning of the 2020 certificate of secondary education examination and also to wish you, the candidates who are sitting for this important examination –the very best.

It is also an opportunity for me to sincerely thank the teachers who have worked tirelessly to prepare you for this important milestone.

Given the challenges that our country has gone through and is still going through, this day may have not arrived without the hard work from the institutions responsible for your education. We are here today because many people have spent countless hours to ensure that you the candidates sit for this examination.

For the work that has gone through your preparations, I would like to ask all South Sudanese to recognize your teachers, officials in the ministry of education and their able Minister Honorable Awut Deng Acuil, who have worked collectively and tirelessly with all the stakeholders to ensure your progress on educational ladder is not obstructed by the challenges facing our country.

I was reliably informed that there are 34,536 candidates who are sitting for this examination. Out of this number, there are 11,716 females and 22,829 males. This figure represents an increase of 20.4% from 2019.

While more still needs to be done, this percentage increase is commendable and it did not come out of the blue. It came as a result of hard work from the officials in the ministry and schools across the country.

Again, thank you to the teachers and the officials in the ministry for this incredible work.

With the return of peace, I would like to urge all South Sudanese to embrace the pursuit of education, because our ability to move our country forward lies in its transformative power.

Finally, to parents of the candidate taking this examination, we thank you for nurturing them and share in your joy in seeing them take this vital step in their progress along their educational journey. Continue giving them unconditional love and support in their preparation to be leaders of tomorrow.

Once again, I wish all the candidates good health during this examination period and the very best of luck.

Thank you all and may God bless South Sudan.