When the sun rises over the lush fields of Lainya County in Central Equatoria, South Sudan, women like Esther Kojo Bismark begin their day with renewed hope and determination. Esther, now the “Women Protection Team” secretary in Mukuya Payam, has walked a long, challenging road to arrive at this moment of promise, self-empowerment, and buoyant optimism.
Esther’s journey is part of a broader shift taking place in Africa’s drylands, reaching the most vulnerable, last-mile populations across the continent, especially in areas prone to climate shocks and conflict, to deliver economic empowerment and resilience-building programs.
One such initiative is the “Building Peace Through Sustainable Access to and Management of Natural Resources (PAMANA)” project, funded by Swiss Caritas (CaCH) and implemented in collaboration with BOMA, Swiss Peace, and local partners like the Organic Farming Advisory Organization (OFAO). Spanning three years (2021-2024), PAMANA harnessed the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) nexus approach to address immediate needs, support sustainable livelihoods, and promote conflict resolution in Koboko and Yumbe districts of Uganda, as well as Yei in Central Equatoria, South Sudan.
Growing up in South Sudan’s drylands, Esther faced numerous barriers to accessing education. When she lost her father, the struggle to pay school fees intensified. Soon, she was forced into an early marriage, cutting short her formal education. “I had the opportunity to go to school, but there were so many challenges,” she recalls. “First of all, I had financial problems in paying school fees when I lost my father. Then I became a victim of early marriage.” Before the PAMANA project, women in Esther’s village had neither the organizational structures to support one another nor the confidence to address household challenges. “We never had unity among families in this community,” she explains. “We used to leave all responsibilities and household decisions to our husbands, who we looked up to as providers.” In Lainya County’s vulnerable communities, women and men lacked training in financial management, conflict resolution, or small-scale business, factors that compound the cycle of poverty. The expectation that men alone provide for the family often left women without the means or confidence to build more secure futures.
This dynamic began to shift when the Organic Farming Advisory Organization (OFAO), one of the local PAMANA implementing partners, arrived in Lainya County to train women in natural resource management, bio-pesticide application, nursery-bed establishment, and post-harvest value addition. Under the PAMANA framework, BOMA contributed gender-mainstreaming expertise and resilient livelihood strategies, while Swiss Peace focused on peacebuilding and conflict sensitivity. Their collaboration ensured that interventions addressed immediate needs, laid the groundwork for sustainable development, and reinforced community-led peace initiatives. The program provided urgent support by integrating the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) nexus approach and paved the way for long-term transformative change in vulnerable communities.
Through trainings introduced by OFAO on agricultural practices, financial literacy, resource management, conflict resolution, and business development, Esther and her peers discovered they could shift from passive dependents to active household contributors. “Before this program came, life was really difficult, especially in solving our own problems because we neither had a single training nor a workshop on handling ourselves,” says Esther.
Armed with new skills, Esther found the confidence to become an economic contributor to her household. “We grew our confidence to help solve family problems as women,” she says. “We also learned how to start small-scale businesses to help our families.”
Esther’s story illustrates how the HPD nexus works in practice by first offering her humanitarian support through a cash grant of 60,000 South Sudanese Pounds (SSP)—(approximately 58 Euros), an immediate relief that enabled her to purchase a female goat and establish a quick source of financial stability.
“When the goat reproduces, it becomes my source of income,” she explains. “I can sell some goats and the goat milk too and use the profits to support my family.”
The development aspect followed when she and her community members participated in structured training on small-scale business management. This allowed her to expand her mandazi (fried dough) enterprise and earn around 7,000 SSP (approx. 6.77 Euros) in daily profit. “This business helps me pay school fees for my children, buy clothes, and meet our basic needs,” she says with a contagious, ever-present smile.
Finally, peace–building became a reality as she and her husband, alongside other community members, engaged in sessions on gender equality and conflict-resolution skills, promoting open dialogue, reducing tensions within families, and strengthening cohesion on the broader community. “Now I’m able to share responsibilities with my husband. We solve things together as a unit.” Her husband’s participation in the training was key. “He has been supportive since the training came because it wasn’t only for me; he also attended,” Esther says.
Male engagement in what might traditionally have been perceived as “women’s issues” has improved household cohesion, reinforcing the idea that gender equality benefits everyone: men, women, and children alike.
Esther’s growing independence, fueled by her profitable mandazi business and goat breeding, has also reduced tension over scarce resources, a key driver of conflict in South Sudan. As families gain more secure incomes, the community experiences fewer disputes, exemplifying PAMANA’s mission to foster peace through sustainable livelihoods.
Esther and 44 other women formed a savings group called the “Women Protection Team,” contributing 3,000 SSP weekly (approx. 2.90 Euros). Armed with a newfound sense of confidence and given that Esther could read and write English more fluently than many of her peers, the group chose her to serve as secretary. She was chosen for the role because of her literacy skills, which she credits to the education she received before dropping out.
“Being a leader has helped me build my confidence,” Esther says. “Because I can read and write in English, I keep records of our meeting minutes and help my fellow women manage our group finances.”
Esther has saved over 30,000 SSP (approx. 29 Euros) within this supportive network, a personal milestone demonstrating how small contributions, consistently made, can accumulate into meaningful capital.
Reflecting on how far she has come, Esther’s eyes still shine with big dreams. “In the near future, I am hopeful that I will go back to school and achieve my dream of completing my education,” she says. Despite her early setbacks, she refuses to let go of her aspirations, believing that further education will enable her to support her family and her community even more effectively.
Esther’s story encapsulates the transformative potential projects like PAMANA. By integrating humanitarian relief, sustainable livelihood development, and peace–building initiatives, PAMANA has helped communities in the drylands of Uganda and South Sudan “meet current and future challenges in non-violent, sustainable, and productive ways.”
“My life has truly changed now that I run my own business, which helps me and my family.” Esther beams, illustrating these programs’ far-reaching impact at the individual and household levels.
For BOMA, Esther is precisely the kind of trailblazer whose success affirms the organization’s broader mission to reach +3 million people by 2027. Her ascension from a young woman with limited options to a confident entrepreneur, community leader, and mother who can support her children’s education shows the fundamental influence of gender-sensitive economic inclusion.
As goats graze near homesteads and the smell of freshly fried mandazi drifts through the village, the transformation taking place in Lainya County offers a glimpse of how peace and stability can take root in even the most challenging environments. Through continued support and the resilient spirit of women like Esther, PAMANA is lighting the path toward a future where every woman’s success story helps build a peaceful, prosperous South Sudan—one goat, one savings meeting, and one shared responsibility at a time. For Esther, this transformative journey has only just begun.