Juba, Renk, and Malakal, South Sudan – The Community Engagement Network (CEN) joined hands with Concern Worldwide to implement the Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) Project in South Sudan with support from the World Food Programme (WFP). Currently running for six months, the project is being rolled out in Malakal and Renk, two areas heavily affected by displacement, returnee movements, and ongoing humanitarian needs.
Why Accountability Matters
Since April 2023, over 1.2 million people have arrived in South Sudan from Sudan, with 74% entering through Renk. This massive influx has placed enormous pressure on border towns, transit centers, and host communities. Malakal and Renk remain among the most affected locations, recording some of the highest numbers of refugee and returnee settlements.
In South Sudan’s complex humanitarian landscape—shaped by conflict, subnational violence, climate change, and floods—ensuring that communities have a voice in the aid they receive is critical. The AAP Project places communities at the heart of humanitarian action by creating safe and accessible channels where people can share feedback, raise concerns, and access accurate information about services.
For CEN, accountability is more than a process; it is about dignity, transparency, and building trust. By actively involving displaced populations, returnees, refugees, and host communities in decision-making, the project ensures that humanitarian assistance reflects the real needs and priorities of these groups.
What the Project Does
CEN is leading community engagement activities that connect people with aid providers. Key interventions include:
- Community Consultations: Bringing together diverse voices to openly discuss services, challenges, and solutions.
- Feedback Mechanisms: Providing safe platforms, hotlines, helpdesks, and face-to-face sessions for communities to share concerns and suggestions.
- Awareness Campaigns: Using radio, posters, public announcements, and community forums to share life-saving information and raise awareness of people’s rights and entitlements.
- Support to Vulnerable Groups: Ensuring that women (24%), children (54%), the elderly (7%), and persons with disabilities (15%) have equal opportunities to participate and influence decisions.
The project builds on the Community Voices initiative, established to focus on two-way feedback systems for affected populations. Messages are tailored to audience needs, regularly updated to reflect evolving conditions, and disseminated through multiple trusted channels.
A People-Centered Approach
The project is rooted in the belief that communities are not passive recipients of aid but active stakeholders. By amplifying their voices, humanitarian actors can improve service delivery, address gaps, and build stronger trust with those they serve.
As CEN’s Executive Director notes: “This project is about giving people the power to shape the assistance they depend on. It’s about listening, acting, and making humanitarian aid more accountable.”
Progress/Impact Update
(Communities Speak, Humanitarians Listen)
Three months into the implementation of the AAP Project in Malakal and Renk, CEN—working in partnership with WFP and Concern Worldwide—is already seeing strong results in strengthening trust and transparency between communities and aid providers.
Communities Engaged
So far, CEN has facilitated dozens of community consultations in the Malakal Protection of Civilians (PoC) site, Malakal town, and Renk Transit Center. These sessions have brought together displaced persons, returnees, refugees, and host community members to share concerns around food assistance, access to services, and protection.
Feedback in Action
Through helpdesks, community correspondents, and focal points, CEN has collected and referred over 3074 pieces of feedback ranging from missing names on distribution lists to concerns over ration quantities. Many of these issues have already been resolved in coordination with WFP and partners—demonstrating that when people speak, humanitarians listen and act.
Community Voices has become a central communication platform across response sites. Affected populations now actively seek out its messages, and humanitarian partners use it as a standardized feedback and information channel.
Voices from the Ground
Mary, a mother in Malakal, shares: “Now we know where to go when there is a problem. Our concerns are taken seriously, and solutions come faster.”
In Renk, youth leader Deng echoes the same sentiment: “We have platforms to speak, and we can see changes happening. This makes us feel part of the process.”
Information Saves Lives
CEN’s awareness campaigns and multi-channel outreach have reached thousands with critical updates about food entitlements, distribution schedules, and available support services.
- 70 public service announcements were produced and shared.
- Over 50 Boda Boda Talk Talk broadcasts were carried out within Malakal, Renk.
- Information Ecosystem Assessments were conducted to understand information needs and gaps.
- Over time, 2000 Solar radios were distributed to listening groups in Malakal town and the PoC in the previous phase of the project, expanding access to timely information.
- 4 feedback bulletins were shared with humanitarian partners and on the CEN website.
This multi-channel communication—from local FM radio and BBTT broadcasts to in-person interactions—ensures that information is timely, accurate, and inclusive.
Capacity Building & Local Ownership
WFP trained CEN’s community correspondents to manage information and helpdesks effectively, use referral pathways, and strengthen complaint and response mechanisms (CRMs). This investment in local staffing has ensured cultural relevance and language accessibility, making the project truly community-led.
Looking Ahead
As the project moves into its final months, CEN and partners are committed to deepening engagement and ensuring that accountability mechanisms are sustained beyond the project cycle.
The progress so far demonstrates that when communities are empowered, humanitarian response becomes more effective, transparent, and dignified. By strengthening Accountability to Affected Populations, the partnership between CEN, WFP, and Concern Worldwide continues to restore dignity, build trust, and put people at the center of humanitarian action.
