13 January 2014 - More than 400 displaced children in two UN bases in Juba today joined thousands of Central Equatoria State candidates in writing their Primary School Leaving Examinations.

The examinations, scheduled for 16 December, were postponed due to violence that engulfed Juba and other parts of the country last year.

Central Equatorial State Minister of Education Hastin Anisio said he was pleased the children had an opportunity to write the exams.

UNICEF and the Norwegian Refugee Council are supporting conduct of the exams at two UN base -- Tomping and UN House. The agency’s head of education, Simon Mphis, said they (UNICEF) were pleased to have supported the “successful” conduct of exams.

Balong Miet, 18, who is seeking refuge at UNMISS’ Tomping camp, said the conflict had affected her preparations for examinations.

“The exam is not really difficult, but the fighting and displacement have made it very hard for us,” she said after the first day’s test today. Ms. Balong called on warring sides to stop the fighting, which has killed thousands of people in a month.

Another displaced candidate, Gatluak Tuong Gatluak, said his present state of mind made the examination difficult for him. “It (the examination) is hard, especially for those of us who lost our relatives to the fighting in Juba.”

“We don’t even have a good place to read and sleep,” Mr. Gatluak added.

Officials say the exams will continue throughout the week.