Talk:Lopit people

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.0 Introduction Underdevelopment is a complex issue, with different perceptions. It can be defined asa situation where resources are not used to their full potential, such that there is little or no progress in terms of development as expected by the population. Some scholars regard it as stagnant and downward development, andothers consider it to be a situation where people cannot take control of their own lives, express their own demands, find solutions to their own problems, participate in politics and decision making, enjoy societal respect and protection, as well as freedom from violence and oppression. In a narrow sense, underdevelopment refers to a situation under which the government fails to provide citizens with the most needed services, such as abundant food supplies, drinkable water, decent housing, security, quality education, health care, good means of transportation, reliable telecommunication services, justice, and job opportunities, stable market and so forth. Its causes are multiple butthey varyfrom one region to another. These include political instability, social insecurity, corruption, unemployment, colonization, inaccessibility,lack of infrastructural facilities, shortage of resources and capital, absence of workforce, poor administration and planning, draught and so forth; and its symptoms are low living conditions, low education and health standards, low productivity, low saving ability, poor mobility, high rate of criminality, high level of pre-mature mortality, frequent strikes and rebellions, high rate of school drop-out, random spread of diseases, and so forth. Therefore, this chapterexploresthe background, problem statement, purpose, objectives,assumptions or hypothesis, significance and scope of the study.

1.1 Background of the Study One of the major problems facing South Sudan is the issueof underdevelopment. Since ancient times through the colonial era up to the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005, the development programs were sidelined in the then Southern Sudan (now Republic of South Sudan). At the time of signing the CPA, it was anticipated that the then Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) in partnership with the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) would automatically meet the expectations of the people who had been deprived of basic services for several decades. After the signing of the CPA and the secession of hostilities, the GoSS took the opportunity to demonstrate its readiness to provide for the welfare of the Southern population and to make sure some progress could be made towards the attainment of its development objectives, such as eradication ofextreme poverty and provision of basic services like security, education, health, media, water and electricity, as well as promotion of gender equality, environmental sustainability and provision of employment activities in order to improve the welfare of its people. Upon gaining independence in 2011, South Sudan automatically obtained full membership with the United Nations (UN) and immediately began to adopt the Global Millennium Development Goals. However, the underdevelopment challenges that are faced in the Country are very complex and are worse in rural areas, of which Lopa County in Imotong State serves as the classical example. South Sudan regions have distinctive physical and human features. In geography, the physical features include location,relief, climate, vegetation ecological settings, and climate; while human features refers to human economic, demographic and cultural aspects of life. Even if all areas share the same political structures and system of administrationdesigned by the central government in Juba, such differences in physical and human features determine whether a particular area can rapidly develop or remain underdeveloped. In this sub-section, extensive description is made on thephysical and human features of Lopa County in order to determine whether they are responsible for the underdevelopment in the area or not. a) The Physical Features The physical features of an area include location, relief, climate and natural vegetation. (i) Location:Lopa County, where this research was conducted, is foundin Imotong State, south-east of South Sudan, located at coordinates approximately 40, 32’ N and 320, 46’ E. It is a landlocked County, surrounded by Lopit West County to the West, Pibor County inBuma State to the North; Kopoeta North Budi Counties in Namorunyang state to the North-Eastand to the East respectively, Torit East County to the South East, and Torit County to the South (see map). Figure 1: map showing the location of the area of study, Lopa County, in Imotong State

Key Area of study Torit Town Juba City

(ii) Size: The size of Lopa County is not yet determined, because its boundaries are still not clearly defined. (iii) Relief: The entire Southern part of Lopa County is occupied by Lopit Mountain, which stretches from Loming in the South-east to Lodohori in the South-westwith its sq. km long not yet measured. (iv) Climate:Lopahas a tropical sub-humid climate class Aw(K‘o’ppen – Geiger’s model)withfavorable rainfall of both relief and equatorial patterns, often influenced by the easterly trade winds that usually carry moisture and snow from the Ocean, which are caught up by the Lotukeimountainand passed onto Lopit mountain on the eastern scarps, dropping it on the area in the form of Relief rainfall, especially during summer seasons. The County often receivesrainfall starting from the months of March to October or from April to November, allowing for a growing period of 250 - 300 days. The total annual rainfallreceived ranges from750 - 950 mm.The monthly temperature of the area varies from moderately hot to very hot. The highest temperature occurs from February to March. The hottest month of the year is February with an average temperature of approximately over 27 °C. In July, the average temperature is over 23 °C, presenting the lowest average temperature of the year.Humidity in the area varies from season to season, but it is high during summer seasons and low during winter seasons. The driest month is January with average of 8 mm and the wettest month is July with an average of approximately over100 mm.Generally, the climate of Lopa County is often warm and wet during the summer season, and it is cool and dry during the winter season, supporting major human economic activities, such as arable farming animal herding. (v) Natural Vegetation: Lopa Countyis partly occupied by the Tropical Savannah Woodland in the South and largely by the Tropical Savanna grassland in the north. The general ecology consists of trees including mahogany, ebony, lalob, tamarine, Olive, fig, bamboo, coconut, palm trees, gum and thorny trees, plus reeds and shrubs, favoring human economic activitiesand proving habitationplacesfor different types ofanimals.

b) Human Features The human features in include human population distribution patterns, economic activities, settlement and cultural landscape development,social life and system of administration. (i) Population Distribution patterns Population distribution refers to how a given population is distributed in space, whether densely or sparsely. Lopa County constitutes the largest population in Imotong state with a population of approximately over 150, 000 persons that form 31 villages, namely: Loming, Lahado, Wiliwili, Mura-Lolongo, Lobitihi, Hidwa, Hatolok, Ofuluho, Sohot, Lohutok-Fwara, Longija, Husa and Hidere, Ibahure, Iboni, Malangit, Atarrangi, Ohilang, Ibele, and Imuluha, Ihirang, Imehejek, Mura-Lopit, Habirongi, Lohobohobo, Lohinyang, Logonowati, Lobelo, Locharok, and Lodohori. Like any other region on the earth, the basic patterns of population distribution in Lopa County are related to certain factors, such as soil type, site and climatic conditions, which reflect human relationship with the physical and social environments. For instance, the problem of insecurity in the area discourages dispersed way of settlement along roads and hence people chose to settle in the defensive sites on the uplands and round the base of Lopit Mountain nearer to water source, mainly rivers and springs, in clusters of congested plots. Lopa has four major areas of population concentration based on the linguistic and historical backgrounds of the inhabitants. Heju-Hiteng and Imehejek areas constitute the largest populations of the county with approximately 60,000 and 45,000 persons out of the disputed population of the county (approximately 120,000 or 200,000 persons), representing respectively 40% and 36% of the total population of the area. Lohutok and Dorrik constitute the populations of approximately 24,000 and 12,000 persons, representing respectively 20% and 10% of the area population. About 80% of the area population lives in rural areas and may be only 20% is found in towns and abroad. The villages with larger populations include Mura-Lopit, Locharok, Idali and Iboni. However, the population density of the county is difficult to be determined now, because its area size has not yet been measured. Other aspects of population, such as health standards, gender ratios, fertility, birth and mortality rates, education level and life expectancy, have not yet been measured too. But sincerely speaking, they do not reflect the features of a developed society. Generally Lopa County is characterized by high rates of infant mortality, more women than men, reduced fertility, low education and poor health and sanitation. (ii) Economic Activities Generally, the ecological setting of Lopa County is suitable for a variety of human economic activities, such as arable farming, Pastoralism, hunting, bird0watching, lumbering, charcoal burning, gathering and many others. However, the inhabitants of Lopa County are mainly agro-pastoralists, practicing both arable agriculture and cattle herding side-by-sidemainly for domestic consumption, though some animals or foodstuff may be sold at local markets. Arable farming is the chief economic activity in the area, practiced on both the mountain slopes and lowland plains, but which entirely relies on human labor using simple tools, such as sticks and hoes.The system of cropping is migratory or shifting, and the main crops grown includesorghum, maize, millet, groundnuts, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, sesames, cassava, okra, and yams. Groundnuts are often sold in local markets at larger scale than the others. Animal herding is the second important occupation in the County with great emphasis on cattle and goats, often grazed alongside human.The leading cattle and goats keeping communities of the area include:Lolongo, Ibahure, Imuluha, Ihirang, Mura-Lopit and Locharok. The main reasons for keeping animals in Lopa County are for marriage, funeral rites, ceremonial feasting and domestic consumption, though some them or their products (milk, meat and hides) are sold in local markets. Besides, the people of Lopa (Lopit) also rear chicken and ducks for their eggs and meat, but these are mostly sold in local markets in exchange for money alongside honey and groundnuts. Other economic occupations in Lopa County include gathering, bee hiving, hunting and fishing. The important forest products harvested include wild yams (hoyya), olive fruits (inguro), coconuts (sohot), Shea nuts, figfruits, and many other sorts. Bees are hived for their honey, which is one the chief commercial goods in the area. The most important wild animals hunted for their products include: elephants for their ivory, giraffes for their meat and hides, ostriches for their feathers and eggs, buffaloes, leopards and crocodiles for hides, gazelles, antelopes and many others for their meat. Fishing is seasonally carried out inMidihir and Abalu riverswhen the water reduced between February and March, and the type of fish caught is mud fish. Traditional industries of oil and handcraft also exist in Lopa County. Oil is extracted mainly from olive fruits, groundnuts, sesames, shea nuts and Ostrich skins and bones, and is useful for cooking and as medicine for treating injuries and various diseases, including asthmatic, Tuberculoses, hepatitis and many others. Besides, blacksmithing is also another local industry practiced in the county, producing traditional tools including simple tools, such as hoes, pangas, axes, knives, spears and arrow, which are useful chiefly for agricultural and hunting activities, though some are sold in local markets. The arts and craft industry of weaving mats, bags and huts with palm leaves is also practiced in the area at larger scale for trading purpose, sold mainly in local markets and others taken to towns like Torit and Kopoeta for sale.Pottery was important 30 years ago but it has now declined. (iii) Settlement and cultural Landscape The term landscape refers to everything seen across a large area of land in the country, such as roads and bridges, dams, railways, airports, buildings, agricultural fields, artificial forests and other architectural designs or characteristics of settlement. According to Professor Joshua (2016 lecture notes p.3), landscape is a result of the interaction of culture with the physical environment, or a form of superimposed on the physical landscape by the activities of man. Landscape may be categorized into urban and rural landscape.It focuses on the physical imprint of a material culture on the land surface, forming the geographic content of human settlement patterns. This implies that, once people settle in any part of the earth, they transform that particular land by building structures on it, including houses, roads, railways, bridges, farms, offices, institutions and so forth. Settlement in Lopa County evolved overtime ago, as back as the migration era (1000 A.D). The settlement patterns of the area takes various forms and shapes, being governed by sitting factors, such as the presence of water sources, availability of building materials, good defensive position, suitability of land, and favorability of climate. The main water sources in the area are rivers and springs, and boreholes have been recently constructed to provide water for drinking, cooking and washing to the villages moving down away from the water sources round the mountain base.The common type of settlement in the area is compact clustering along valleys with rivers and springs on the north-eastern slopes of Lopit range. The founders of villages in the area avoided low plains and chose to settle on selected uplands and slopes on the base of the mountain perhaps for reasons of security and defense, as the area is surrounded by hostile neighbors including the Toposa, Buya and Murlei. They also avoided wind-swept heights and areas prone to diseases (dense forests) for reason of health. However, some villages have started moving down to new sites along roads for reasons of trade and development, for example Loming and Ibahure. (iv) Social Life The most important aspects of social life in Lopa County is initiationinto manhood or womanhoodage set because it is attached to attaining responsibilities, obligations and authorities to serve the community and make decisions on important issues,such as marriage and departure from their parents’ families to form their own new families. Under this system, grown boys begin to form themselves into associations and prepare for initiation into semi-ruling age setat ages between thirteen and fifteen years. At this stage, a boy is considered ready to marry and work for his in-lows for a period of about two - three years before taking his wife. The period spent in semi-ruling age for an age set to be initiated into a ruling age set differs from one section of people to another within the County. For instance, the people of Dorrik and Ngotira, allow their young men to be initiated into a new ruling generation after having spent 12 years in a semi-ruling stage; and the sections of Omiaha and Otuho people, the youth are allowed to be initiated into a ruling generation after having spent 22 years in a semi-ruling stage. Likewise, the grown girls begin to form themselves into associations and prepare for initiation into adolescent girlhood (hodwo) at ages between 10 and 12 years old. At this stage, they begin to share things and work together as a team,often sleepingin the same rooms at the homes of older women from whom theyobtainadvice on their expected duties as adolescent girls(hodwo)at night and early in the mornings. Thenormal initiation of young girls into adolescent girlhood set (hodwo) takes place around the age between 13 and15 years old. However an individual girl may be selected by a ruling generationfor initiation at any time, depending on her size and social activeness.On the other hand, girls are considered ready for marriage and expected to start bearing children not later than sixteen and seventeen years old. Any girl who remains unmarried until the age of over20 years is considered unlucky and so she may marry a married man as a secondhand wife, or be married by an old man or a bachelor (obilongi). This cultureis responsible for rampant cases of unwanted pregnancies and early marriages in the area, discouraging girls from going to school and creating school drop-outs among young men. This leads results into high level of illiteracy, contributing greatly to underdevelopment in the area. Another important social institution in Lopa County is the Language diversity. In some societies, language serves as a unifying factor, but the use of different dialects in Lopa County tends to divide the inhabitants along linguistic sections. The language dialects spoken in Lopa include Dorrik, Ngotira, Omiaha, Lohutok, Lalanga and Otuho mother tongues. This allowed the speakers to settle into linguistic groups. This has led to sectional divisions in the area, creating conflicts among the groups, which in turn causes social insecurity in the area, hindering the efforts to development. Also central to social structure of Lopa County is the traditional dance (chia). In most cases, this social institution acts as a unifying factor, as it allows interactions between dancers from different sections in the area. But it also creates conflict among the groups, especially for the issues related to struggle for girl-friends, traditional signals and drunkenness occasional activities, causing social insecurity, which in turn affects the efforts to development in the area. This social institution also serves as a stumbling block to academic progress, as it attracts closer interactions and lust of flesh among the adolescent youth of opposite sex (boys and girls) and they may end up sexual relations, causing unplanned pregnancy that may lead to early marriage that may lead to high school drop-outs, allowing for high level of illiteracy, which in turn affects the efforts towards development in the County. Other social activities in Lopa County include wrestling, athletics and sports, but these are not practiced to greater extent. Football is the only modern sport activity practiced in the county to certain extent with an attempt to create mutual interactions and peaceful co-existence among the youth as partial contribution to nation building. Since the introduction of inter-county tournaments in Eastern Equatoria in 2006, Lopa County Football Club has been doing the best among the region’s clubs. It reached the final matches for five times, winning three cups (2007, 2008 and 2013) and losing two (2006 and 2015). The team had also lost in one quarter final matches (2009). The years 2011 and 2012 went without any inter-county competitions in the region. Lopa FC has never been beaten at early stages at all. Thus, football is a major modern hobby among the youth of Lopa County. (v) Administration Lopa County is one of the twelve administrative areas in Imotong State (South Sudan)that werecreated as a county with its Headquarters at Imehejek in 2004 as a result of Dr. John Garang’s policy of towns to rural areas. Historically, Imehejek was first made a seat of Lopit area rural council in 1994 by the Sudan’s Government under the then Imotong Province. With the creation of Lopa as a county in 2004, it became the seat of area administration with its five payams, namely Lopit South, Lopit Central, Lopit North, Lopit West and Lafon. In 2005, Heju-Hiteng Payam was added to make six functional payams in the County. In 2009, more payams were added with Lafon Payam splitting into four, Lopit west into two (Bule and Longiro) plus one proposed (Hamuto), Lopit South with one proposed (Hidahur), Lopit North also with one proposed (Dorrik), and Lopit Central proposing Mura-Lopit as a new payam. On April 26, 2016, Lafon and Lopit West areas broke away as new counties. Part of LopitNroth (Arilo) payam joined Lopit West, while part of it (proposed Dorrik payam) joined Lopit Central to remain under Lopa County.Currently Lopa County has three functional Payams plus three other proposed ones, namely, Lohutok, Heju-Hiteng, Imehejek, Hidahur (proposed), Mura-Lopit (proposed, Dorrik (proposed). 1.2Statement of the Problem Since the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005, the Government of South Sudan has been struggling to curb the problems underdevelopment in rural areas by advocating the policy of taking towns to villages through the creation counties, granting of constituency development funds to communities, and allowing development partners and foreign investors to provide services to the citizens at grassroots levels. But this has never been realized in many Counties including Lopa, because of oppressive, discriminative and corrupt leadership, hence restricting employment and other socio-economic opportunities for the last ten years.Since its creation, Lopa has been politically marginalized and denied the right to existence as a sovereign administrative areaby the government of defunct Eastern Equatoria state. The leaders of the area have conflicting interests and they often quarrel for power struggling, creating sharp opposition and division among the indigenous population along sectional groups. Those who got chances to hold portfolio posts tend to be arrogant, extravagant and despotic against the will of the masses. On the other hand, the youth of the county, who would have ensured checks and balance on this kind of leadership, are not organized and extremely unaware of socio-political games. Generally, the peopleof Lopa face a lot of socio-economicdifficulties, such as poor healthconditions and high level of mortality, coupledwith lack of medical supplies and absence of health facilities. Education level indicates the lowest of all the counties in the state, andmost schools are stilled operating in open spaces and under the trees or grass-roofed and reed-walled classrooms. To make things worse, almost all teachers on the ground are untrained and unqualified. There is only one operating secondary school (Imehejek Secondary School) but it lacks qualified teachers. This school is not well equipped and its environment is very poor. Most of its buildings, which had been destroyed during war, are not yet rehabilitated and no new classes have been built. Owed to such problems, the school enrollment is always low, and so many of the area learners tend to migrate to places other than the home in search of better learning facilities, more particularly in Torit and Juba. Physical infrastructural facilities, such as roads, telecommunication networks and buildings are poor, as much of the funds meant for the area development have ever been corrupted by the authorities or persons in charge.Besides, the county has no sufficient operational market, and most of commodities sold with high prices at poor trading centers of the area are often taken from nearby towns, like Torit and Kopoeta,but in smaller quantities. Yet there is no control of market prices and collection of custom duties in the area to accumulate revenue that would be used for development of the area. More unfortunately, it has no outlet and, as a landlocked area and is exposed to insecurityby the most hostile neighbors surrounding it, most notably the Buya, the Toposa, the Murlei, the Pari and the Lotuko communities, limiting its economic advantages and prospects. Besides, the County also has its own endogenous aspects of social insecurity, such as intra and inter-village conflicts, domestic violence and age-groups clashes, which have restricted the development of the area. 1.3 Purpose of the Research The research was carried out purposelyto investigate the root causes and major problemsof underdevelopment in Lopa County with an attempt to provide alternative strategies and policies to be implemented in line with national development goals forovercoming the prevailing problems. 1.4 Objectives of the Research The study was set forth to achieve four main objectives, notably to: (i) Identify the root causes of underdevelopment in Lopa County (ii) Examine the major problems or challenges facing Lopa County (iii) Assess the sources of livelihood and potential resources in Lopa County (iv) Suggest alternative strategies and policies for possible solutions to the prevailing problems in the County.

1.5 Assumptions (Hypotheses) Civil war, conflict, corruption, lack of unity for purpose, poor leadership and lack of skilled workforce were advanced to be the root causes of underdevelopment in Lopa County; while insecurity, illiteracy, alcoholism, poverty, unemployment, inaccessibility and poor infrastructure were advanced to be the major problems of underdevelopment faced in the area.Services like the provision ofelectricity, construction of tarmac roads with durable bridges and media services like radio, television, internet and telecommunication networks were to be either possible or impossible. However, the choice was to be made as which one between hydro-electricity and geothermal power stations could be established in addition to solar power and wind power. Opinions on the possibility to establish supermarkets, decent hotels and lodges, university and referral hospitalwere also sought. It was also assumed that if the various villages of Lopa County are relocated down from the mountain slopes and then amalgamated into few but large settlements accordingto payams, the new sites will grow into urban centers. Arable farming and cattle herding were also presumed to be the chief economic occupations in the County, followed by hunting, gathering and bee hiving. Other economic activities such as fishing, commerce and trade were said to be practiced but to some or lesser extent, assuming that food crops such as sorghum, groundnuts and animal products are the main source of livelihoods in the area. Monthly salaries, wages, profits, and rents are of less significant in livelihoods. The living conditions of the population were assumed to be very poor with majority of families living in mud-walled and grass-roofed houses. The followingpolicies were also advanced asbeing appropriate for combating the underdevelopment problems faced in Lopa County: • Poverty reduction through the provision of basic needs such as food, clean water, and shelter among others • Provision of health, educational, security, commercial and trade services • Broadening and ensuring fairness in employment opportunities • Avoiding corruption by channeling huge capital and resources into investment in agriculture, infrastructure and peace building • Direct transfer of income or revenue shares from the source to benefit the poor • The government, the NGOs, the youth and women and the CBOs and Civil society groups can play big roles if they can join hands to develop the County. • Groundnuts, grain, gum, limestone and stones, honey and wildlife are the potential sources of income or resources that are available in Lopa County, which can be used for developing the area if properly exploited. • Engagementin agricultural activities, Peace initiatives, capacity building programs and so forth. 1.6Significance of the Study This research paper is very useful in both development and research centers. It provides accurate data of multidimensional nature of the causes and the underlying problems of underdevelopment not only in Lopa, but throughout the entire country.Its findingsare of special value fordevelopment agencies, instructors and researchers in the fields of Economic Geography, Economics and Rural Development, while still being intelligible and informative to lay readers. The findings may also help the CBOs and the NGOs to gauge successes in implementing the Government’s policies on development in Lopa County, and perhaps this will awake other Counties in South Sudan. It helps in determining possible strategies and policies, and in identifying projects and organizations to be recommended for the accomplishment of development goals in the underdeveloped areas in South Sudan, providing a benchmark concerning policy implementation to the Local Community, County Authority, State Government and other development agencies in Imotong State. The paper is also useful as a reference in learning institutions and as a guide for project proposals for the development of Lopa County. It gives the government, development agencies and researchers a sense of how exceptional Lopa County is like, especially in terms of socio-economic structures. It is therefore with these backdrops that the research is carried out. 1.7Scopeof the Study This research paperis narrow in scope and coverage, satisfying most requirements for addressing the problems of underdevelopment only inLopa County, which represents the whole of South Sudan in theory. It was carried inthe four Payams ofthe County, namely: Lohutok, Heju-Hiteng, Imehejek and Dorrik (proposed) payams.

CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW 2.0 Introduction The issue of underdevelopment in South Sudan has been historically connected with a number of problems including injustice, dictatorship (repression) and negative impact of colonialism. This chapter seeks to capture the most relevant conceptual definitions, root causes and problems, as well as important theoretical frameworks of underdevelopment from available cross-section data in relation to the problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County. Rev. EnockTombe (March 2015) during his presentation (on the root causes of a political conflict in South Sudan since December 2013, to say that) wrote, “When the Comprehensive Agreement (CPA) was signed on January 9th, 2005, it was expected that the problems of marginalization and discrimination would be solved. However, little was achieved, including peace, establishment of local government administrative areas at the grassroots level, repatriation of refugees and Internal Displaced Persons (IDPs), rehabilitation of old and opening of new health and learning institutions, and boosting of international trade and commerce in the new nation (South Sudan). When the South seceded from the North as an independent country on July 9th 2011, we stayed in peace for only about 30 months to see another war eroding the new nation since December 2013 due to almost the same problems of marginalization and discrimination but with slight difference in the area of a tendency, of which the current war is towards tribalism, nepotism in employment, unfair procedures of promotion in the army, coupled with shameless corruption, lack of respect to the rule of law and greed for power. This has further added a lot of negative economic, social and political impacts on the people of South Sudan, who had already endured similar problems for the last more than two decades in the hands of colonizers. People loss their property and the beloved ones at higher scales and are exposed to the problems of insecurity, starvation, inflation and unemployment”. MachokAtak (December 22, 2015) also wrote on his message to the youth of South Sudan that, “our heroes and heroines fought with the governments in the North for two decades in order to liberate us from all forms ofinjustice such as indignities, discrimination and unfair representations, and it took concerted struggles loaded with sacrifices and sufferings hoping that freedom would be realized one day. The period of CPA until independence (2005 – 2011) was the moment to establish a roadmap for the second phase of struggle against illiteracy, poverty, diseases, and poor infrastructure and giving citizens the rights and opportunities they were denied for two decades to put themselves in the position of self-reliance and economic stability, advocating for love, peaceful co-existence, care for one another, helping each other generously and having mutual interaction and cooperation among fellow nationals. But looking at where we are now, we find ourselves fallen back to what took us decades to get out of (repression, indignation, discrimination and misrepresentations in the government) on tribal basis”. The two scholars attribute the current issue of underdevelopment in the country to injustice on tribal basis; and the underlying problems according to them, include insecurity, starvation, inflation and unemployment. 2.1 Concepts and Definitions of Underdevelopment The term “Underdevelopment” is a complex issue, with different concepts and definitions. Many scholars regard it as backward development, and others understand it as downward development. In economics,it is a situation where resources are not used to their full socio-economic potential, with the result that local or regional development is slower in most cases than it should be (Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia). Also, the views of the following scholars may provide us with a clear picture of the concept of underdevelopment: Gesa Anthony (2010): he says the term ‘Underdevelopment’ means the inability of a country to fully exploit and utilize the existing resources, and where income or savings, technology, output and life expectancy are low. Stephen EkokobeAwung(Wikipedia, April 2015): he considers underdevelopment to be a situation where the government fails to provide basic services to its citizens, including the poor. He regards the underdeveloped countries as failed states, pointing out poverty, corruption and poor leadership as the major factors responsible for the failure of the state. These can be reduced through territorial control, safety and security, proper management of public resources, effective delivery of basic services (like education, health care and infrastructural facilities) and provision of employment opportunities. Sudan Tribune Newspaper (February 02, 2009 19:14) defines underdevelopment as an economic situation in which there are persistent low levels of living in conjunction with absolute poverty, low income per capita, as well as a state of an organism or a country that has not reached its maturity. Dr. FithJofKuhnen (1986/87): he regards underdevelopment asbackwardness, which has to be made up for. Suitable measures include the modernization of the production apparatus, capital aid and transfer of know-how from the advanced nations to poor nations. He understands development in a strategic perspective, as “an increase of production and efficiency measured primarily by comparing the per capita income”. Professor RagnarNurkse (cited by Aqeel Ahmed Rajparat April 2015): considers underdevelopment as a man-made problem, for which Man-made solution need to be found. Rev. EnockTombe (March 2015) during his presentation (on the root causes of a political conflict in South Sudan since December 2013, to say that) wrote, “When the Comprehensive Agreement (CPA) was signed on January 9th, 2005, it was expected that the problems of marginalization and discrimination would be solved. However, little was achieved, including peace, establishment of local government administrative areas at the grassroots level, repatriation of refugees and Internal Displaced Persons (IDPs), rehabilitation of old and opening of new health and learning institutions, and boosting of international trade and commerce in the new nation (South Sudan). When the South seceded from the North as an independent country on July 9th 2011, we stayed in peace for only about 30 months to see another war eroding the new nation since December 2013 due to almost the same problems of marginalization and discrimination but with slight difference in the area of a tendency, of which the current war is towards tribalism, nepotism in employment, unfair procedures of promotion in the army, coupled with shameless corruption, lack of respect to the rule of law and greed for power. This has further added a lot of negative economic, social and political impacts on the people of South Sudan, who had already endured similar problems for the last more than two decades in the hands of colonizers. People loss their property and the beloved ones at higher scales and are exposed to the problems of insecurity, starvation, inflation and unemployment”. MachokAtak (December 22, 2015) also wrote on his message to the youth of South Sudan that, “our heroes and heroines fought with the governments in the North for two decades in order to liberate us from all forms ofinjustice such as indignities, discrimination and unfair representations, and it took concerted struggles loaded with sacrifices and sufferings hoping that freedom would be realized one day. The period of CPA until independence (2005 – 2011) was the moment to establish a roadmap for the second phase of struggle against illiteracy, poverty, diseases, and poor infrastructure and giving citizens the rights and opportunities they were denied for two decades to put themselves in the position of self-reliance and economic stability, advocating for love, peaceful co-existence, care for one another, helping each other generously and having mutual interaction and cooperation among fellow nationals. But looking at where we are now, we find ourselves fallen back to what took us decades to get out of (repression, indignation, discrimination and misrepresentations in the government) on tribal basis”. The two scholars attribute the current issue of underdevelopment in the country to injustice on tribal basis; and the underlying problems according to them, include insecurity, starvation, inflation and unemployment.

2.2 Causes of Underdevelopment There are so many causes of under development but which are not the same in all under areas. Somewhere overpopulation is the major cause; somewhere lack of resources and capital, and somewhere wrong policies and strategies, and somewhere terrorism. But the most related causes of under development to our study are corruption, political instability, social insecurity, injustice, dependency, and poor leadership, to mention but a few. Many scholars point out the following as major causes of underdevelopment: a) Absence of sequential occupancy: sequential occupancy refers to successive occupation of a place by different people overtime, leaving their various cultural imprints or ways of living whereupon the modern developments are based. According to some cultural geographers,a society remains underdeveloped because of its remoteness from borrowed civilizations. Professor Joshua (July 2016)in one of his lecture on “cultural landscape” (Cultural Geography) in the University of Juba, pointed out that, the ‘underdevelopment of some areas on the earth could be due to absence of sequential occupation by different peoples overtime”. He then cited Khartoum as an example, saying that the site was first selected by the Turko-Egyptians as the seat of their colonial government (1821 – 1885); and thence, roads, railways and telecommunication networks were opened to link it with the outside world during this period. The Mahdist regime came in and adapted it as the capital (1885 -1898) and later followed by the Anglo-Egyptians (1899 -1956). The Turko-Egyptian government in Sudan concentrated its development programs in the north isolating the South. Schools and colleges, hospitals, cotton and sugar plantations, oil refineries and other administrative arrangements were mostly accomplished in the North than in South Sudan. When the British granted Sudan her independence on January 1, 1956, when the Muslim Arabs in the North took over and continued to develop the site, marginalizing the South in terms of development and distribution of national wealth among other injustices. This had forced the Southerners to engage the central government in Khartoum in the long civil wars of self-determination with certain intermissions from 1955– 2005. b) Dependency Syndrome: is defined as the state of needing the help or support of another in order to survive or be successful” (Oxford Dictionary). According to Brazilian sociologist, Teotonio Dos Santos(cited from Wikipedia), dependency is a situation in which certain countries are conditioned by the development and expansion of another to which the former is subjected. Daniel H. (February 7, 2013) in his comment off on the factors that hinder development in Africa pointed out that, “even though foreign aid is beneficial, overreliance on this aid usually causes a nation’s economy to stagnate’. ‘In Africa, foreign donations make up a large percentage of a country’s budget and this should not be the case, and so it is no longer for countries to wait for aid in order to improve infrastructure, or education and health”; he added c) Corruption: is defined as 'the abuse of public power for personal ends'. In other words, it is a dishonest, illegal or immoral standard of behavior of people in authority. This phenomenon has grown in recent decades both in terms of geographic extent and intensity, infiltrating every country in the world but virtually in South Sudan. The editorial of Sudan Tribune (Monday February 02, 2009) since then subjected the underdevelopment of South Sudan to high levels of corruption, predicting that it will remain a challenge (hindrance) to sustainable development even if the South would achieve referendum for independence political entity by 2011. In political terms, corruption is when government officials use their governmental powers for illegitimate private gain. Politically, corruption includes bribery, extortion, cronyism, nepotism, patronage, graft, and embezzlement. According to Rajpar, misuse of government power for other purposes (like repression of political opponents and general police brutality) is not considered political corruption. An illegal act by private persons or corporations not directly involved with the government is not considered corruption either. Illegal acts by officeholders constitute political corruption only if the acts are directly related to their official duties. All forms of government are susceptible to political corruption. In some nations corruption is very common that it is expected when ordinary businesses or citizens interact with government officials. What constitutes corruption differs depending on the country or jurisdiction. Certain political funding practices that are legal in one place may be illegal in another. In some countries, government officials have broad or not well defined powers, and the line between what is legal and illegal can be difficult to draw. d) Injustice: is defined as the fact of a situation being unfair and of people not being treated equally. In other words, it is unfair act or example of unfair treatment (Oxford Dictionary). Based on Rajpar’s description, injustice can be of socio-political and socio-economic forms. Socio-politically, it involves the violation of individual liberties, including the denial of voting rights or due process, infringements on rights to freedom of speech or religion, and inadequate protection from cruel and unusual punishment. Such injustice often stems from unfair procedures, and involves political systems in which some but not others are allowed to have voice and representation in the processes and decisions that affect them. In economics, injustice involves the state's failure to provide citizens with basic necessities of life, such as access to adequate food, decent housing, and its maintenance of huge discrepancies in wealth. In the most extreme cases of misdistribution, the masses suffer from poverty while the elite live in relative luxury. e) Insecurity due toCivil Waror conflict, political instability and: a civil war is a situation in which two or more groups within a country for some reasons fight against each other over a period of time. Whereas conflict is defined as a situation in which there are opposing ideas, opinions, feelings or wishes among the members of the same or different groups within a country (Oxford Dictionary). According to Daniel H. civil wars or conflicts and political instability are the causes of insecurity, which in turn causes the problem of underdevelopment in some of the poor countries in Africa, like Somalia, Sudan and Congo; and therefore, South Sudan is not exceptional. “When there is civil war or conflict, investors cannot dare to invest in such a country and thus it hinders the creation of employment opportunities; and in addition, infrastructure also suffers since the government will be inclined to spend its limited resources on fighting rather than enhancing infrastructure”, he wrote. In regards to South Sudan, a letter to the editor of Sudan Tribune (published on Monday February 2, 2009 at 19:14) attributed the underdevelopment in the country to a long (21 years) civil war with the Khartoum Government, in addition to unequal distribution of wealth (injustice) since colonial era through independence and post-independence periods in Sudan. f) Imperialism: imperialism is defined as a system in which a powerful nation controls and influences the weak or defeated nations. Marxist historian and political activist, Walter Rodney (cited from Wikipedia), contends in reference to Africa’ underdevelopment as the decisiveness and consequence of imperialism, because Africa has lost power. According to Rodney, power is the ultimate determinant of development and underdevelopment in human society, being basic to the relations within any group or groups. It implies the ability to defend one’s interest and, if necessary, impose one’s will by any means available. In relations between peoples, power determines the extent to which a people survive as a physical and cultural entity. For instance, the remoteness of South Sudan in terms of socio-economic development was due to colonization, marginalization and exploitation of the region by the Khartoum based governments since the colonial until the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in Kenya in 2005. According to Rajpar, underdevelopment may result from imperialism and exploitation of the poor by the wealthy elite. In some underdeveloped countries, it is the rich elite that own the means and resources of the nation to develop themselves at the expense of the poor whom they choose to exploit and marginalize. For instance, many land spaces that could be distributed to the mass population in Juba are decisively owned by wealthy elite as plots where they erect concrete buildings. g) Limited Technological capability: refers to how a country can access, create and utilize science and technology for solving socio-economic issues. According to Daniel H. the world is increasingly being driven by technological innovation. Medicine, agriculture, transportation, drinkable water and clean environment are all based on science and technology. Hence, it is important that to become successful in this modern world, technological elements must be incorporated into the improvement (development) process. According to Professor Joshua, the level of development in a given society is generally reflective of the technology of a culture. The higher the technology of a society, the higher the level of development, and the opposite is true. This implies that the underdevelopment in a given society is a result of limited technology of that particular society. h) Lack of Determination: according to Aqeel Ahmed Rajpar, the reason behind the underdevelopment of is the lack of determination, if people and the Government work together for the better future of their nation they can do, but the problem is this who to start and where to start because the system is very weak. The following writers may also provide relevant generalizations on the causes and problems of underdevelopment in the area

2.3 Problems of Underdevelopment According to Todaro Michael (1981, p.29), underdevelopment is characterized by low levels of living, low levels of economic productivity, high levels of debt burdens, high rates of unemployment, significant dependence on subsistence production, and vulnerability to foreign influences. Some of these are explained as follows: a) Low levels of living:the low level of living is manifested in the form of absolute poverty, which indicates low incomes, poor housing, poor health, low education, high infant mortality, low life and work expectancy, and general sense of malaise and hopelessness in the society. b) Absolute poverty is the state of being very poor or lacking something, living under low economic conditions like starvation, destitution, indecent housing and unsafe environment may be due to low productivity and limited income generation, or due to increased family size under one working individual. c) High level of Unemployment: unemployment refers to the fact of a number of people not getting jobs or without jobs; a state of being jobless. Unemployment may be a result of other forms of injustice, such as nepotism, tribalism, ethnicity and intolerance. This may lead to high level of criminality – the fact of people being involved in criminal acts or illegal acts, such as money laundering, trafficking and drug abuse. d) Poor infrastructure: the term poor, means not having or having little, deserving sympathy or pity; a state of being not good or of low quality than expected. While infrastructure refers to the basic systems and services that are necessary for a government or an organization to run smoothly, for example buildings, means of transport and communication, and water and power supplies (Oxford Dictionary). Poor infrastructure may be a result of civil war or conflicts, since the government tends to spend the limited resources on facilitating fighting. It may also be due to corruption, since the ruling elite tend to embezzle the funds meant for development. e) High level of illiteracy: illiteracy is the state of being unable to read and write, or being ignorant. The illiterate adults cannot function effectively in modern society, and cannot adequately perform fundamental tasks such as filling out an employment application; understanding a legally-binding contract; following written instructions; reading a newspaper article; reading traffic signs; consulting a dictionary; or understanding a bus schedule. Those who are functionally illiterate may be subject to social intimidation, health risks, stress, low income, and other pitfalls associated with their inability. The main focus of underdeveloped states should be on the education of their people, because educated people and skilled people can play the fruitful role in the development of nation. f) Poor health conditions: health refers to the state of being physically and mentally healthy. Thus a poor health condition describes the low level of health, which deserves sympathy. Poor health conditions may occur due to lack of proper health care, absence of health services, and lack of health and sanitation awareness. Leading to high level of mortality, which is the state of being human and not living forever; or the number of death cases in a particular situation or period of time. Mortality may be a result of poor health care and low economic structure. g) Low level of productivity: this is connected with lack of skills and technology abilities among the people. This is a situation wheremany of workers build their business models on offering lower-cost labor slowing economic growth and making the country less able to buy high-value goods and services.Of course, skilled workers matter more; and the lesson learned here is that education, training, and development of intellectual infrastructure are every bit as important as low wages for today's global trading powers. As Dr. Kuhnen puts, “investment in human resource may be the best hope to become truly competitive in a world full of faster-growing, low-wage competitors”.

2.4. Theoretical Framework of Underdevelopment The root causes of underdevelopment in Lopa County can be identified by examining the available theoretical frameworks of underdevelopment; perhaps this will enable us to determine the necessary strategies and policies, as well as which projects and organization, to be considered in line with the national development goals of South Sudan, which include attainment of peace, justice and prosperity, good governance, transparency, gender promotion, good health and wellbeing, universal education, clean water and sanitation, accessible roads, expansion of rural centers into towns, environmental protection and affordable energy among others. The following theories may be helpful: a) Theory of strategy: it perceives underdevelopment as a result of vicious circles of factors, assuming that low income is the consequence of low labor productivity, which is a result of the shortage of capital, which is, in turn, a result of the low saving ability and which is determined by the low real income, hence the circle is closed. This theory believes that, development can be initiated by transforming the traditional subsistence economy into a modern market economy, with great emphasis on the importance of capital formation and investment.

Figure 2: Illustration of strategy Theory

b) Dualism theory assumes a split of socio-economic structures of different sectors. Itdifferentiates between two sectors of economy, notably the traditional subsistence production sector and the Modern production sector. Usually, the traditional subsistence sector consists of small-scale agriculture, handicraft and petty trade, has a high degree of labor intensity but low capital intensity and little division of labor; while the modern production sector consists of a capital-intensive mode of production with a high division of labor, producing for the world market. The two sectors have little relation and interdependence and each develops according to its own pattern. To overcome underdevelopment, in this concept, is to suppress the traditional sector (agriculture) by concentrating on and expanding the modern sector (industry). According to this thinking, the important role of agriculture should be emphasizes at the beginning of development, in order to obtain enough internal resources for the development process. c) Balanced GrowthTheory: stresses the simultaneous development of all sectors of economy so that they may complement each other and grow at more or less the same (Geza Anthony p. 12). It requires that all potential resources have to be mobilized to form the capital. If capital is available, investments or any requirements for development will be made. This implies a balance development of both agricultural and industrial sectors to increase Gross Products, as well as a wide variety of goods and services. This will encourage production for export and provision of employment opportunities. Thus the emphasis is on capital investment, not on the ways and means of achieving capital formation. d) Theory Unbalanced Growth: stresses that, most resources should be earmarked for one leading potential sector of significant that will consequently lead to the development of the other sectors through linkages (Gesa Anthony p.215). This implies that investments should not be spread evenly but concentrated in such projects in which they cause additional investments because of their backward and forward linkages without being too demanding on entrepreneurial abilities. This encourages decentralized making and planning on development, stimulating specialization in economies and scale production. e) Theory of Big-Push: recommends the injection of capital and resources into the economy on a large scale. This will enable investing in industrial and other socio-economic sectors of the economy. It stresses that, smaller levels of investment may not propel the economy of the country to successfully attain development (Gesa Anthony p.217) f) Dependency theory: stresses that, the economic and political interests of the wealthy nations determine the development or underdevelopment of the poor nations. In a narrow sense, it implies that the economic and social interests of the rich elite group in the society determine the fate of the poor masses. The above theories enable us to capture the characteristics of the causes and problems of underdevelopment from the available cross-section data and relate them to asituation faced in Lopa County. From the above explanations, underdevelopment is perceived in complex nature, which occurs due to several factors including injustice, poor leadership, dependence, corruption, civil war, imperialism, limited technology, lack of determination and so forth. Its real nature and related cases include high level of insecurity, high rate of unemployment, rampant criminality, absolute poverty, high level of illiteracy, low health conditions, low productivity and so on. Generally, the problems of underdevelopment are related to negative behavior of man. This makes us to agree with Dr. RagnarNurkse that, “underdevelopment is a man-made problem that needs man-made solution”. For instance, it is man who can cause war or conflict and is also man who can bring peace and reconciliation.

CHAPTER THREE RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY

3.0 Introduction Research design is the art or process of how the research will look like. It is a case study of attitudes towards the topic of study held by the sample population, and is central to the validation of findings. This chapter is a planning stage, which describes the designs and principles guiding the study. It explores the research methodology, scope or area of study, the sample population and sampling techniques, data collection instruments and procedures, analysis, limitations and ethical considerations as explained below.

3.1 Methodology This research was carried out using the observation, questionnaire and interview methods. The observation method was used during field trips to assess the landscape and physical characteristics related to the problems of underdevelopment in the area of study. A digital camera was used to capture and store the most significant data of the features in the area, some of which are shown hereinafter. Meanwhile the questionnaire was designed for systematic collection of data from the target population at certain points using both qualitative and quantitative methods. This method was chosenbecause it is appropriate for collecting data that is sensitive to political and social biases, especially when it comes to traditional values of the society and provision services by the government and NGOs. Besides that, it is faster enough to gather data in short time. Whereas the interview methodwas also important because it facilitates inquiry of the intended data in order to achieve the target goals of the study. Face to face interview method was carried out to clearly single out the information that could not easily be put in writing. Interviewing is helpful a lot in observing respondents attitudes regarding sensitive information.

3.2 Population and Sampling

This subsection describes the target population, sample population and sampling techniques. 3.2.1 Target Population: this research targets only the residents of four payams of Lopa County, namely Lohutok, Obunge, Imehejek and Dorrik, specifically persons aging 18 and above years regardless of status, occupational, religious and gender differences. Key government and NGO officials working in the county will also be targeted because they are responsible for fostering and monitoring the implementation of development policies of their respective authorities on the ground. 3.2.2 Sample Population A total of 40 respondents, including the Government and NGO officials in the area of study will be selected for interview. At least 30 ordinary persons, 4 Payam Executive chiefs and also 4 Payam Administrators, plus one county Commissioner and any one NGO official will be selected. 3.2.3 Sampling Techniques: simple random sampling will be used to select ordinary respondents at any location of study, while the purposive sampling technique will be used to select the four Payam Executive chiefs and four Payam Administrators, plus the County Commissioner and any one NGO at the county headquarters. 3.3 Data Collection This subsection describes the nature of data collection instruments, validity and reliability of the content and data collection procedures of the research. 3.3.1 Data collection instruments: the data for this research will be collected by administering the questionnaires consisting of closed-ended and open-ended questions to the respondents. The closed-ended questions were set forth to generate statistics in a quantitative form. These questions follow a set format with standard answers containing boxes for respondents to tick if appropriate, with intention to find out the number of participants and to measure their views on the causes and problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County. While the open-ended questions were set forth to find out what people think could be the causes and problems of underdevelopment in the area. Blank spaces were provided to the questions for respondents to write their own ideas or opinions in. Because there are no standard answers provided analysis would be complex; and as it was opinions which were sought rather than numbers and percentages, fewer questions were produced. Also, a combination of closed-ended and open-ended questions were used in this research, for example questions numbered 16 and 17. This format of questionnaire begins with closed-ended questions provided with boxes for respondents to mark in, or scales to rank the respondents’ views, and then finishes the section with open-ended questions for more detailed response. At least 40 questionnaires were produced and held by 40 respondents from Lopa County, including the 10 purposive sampledofficials operating in the area. 3.3.2 Validity and reliability of the Content Toensure the validity and reliability of the content, the research questionnaire will be subjected to group discussion and to one expert in the field of development studies and to the supervisor of this research in the University of Juba. The questionnaire will be tried out with 10 selected individuals belonging to the area of study who area in Juba who are not part of the sample population. The feedback from the tested individuals will be used to revise the instrument for final data collection. 3.3.3Ethical consideration The questionnaires were structured and written with professional ethics (not sensitive or bias) for audience to respond to its contents with less or without critics. For instance, respondents’ names, addresses or other means of identification were eliminated. Only general data rather than specific were required. For example, age range rather than specific date and year of birth, professional but not specialty within that profession, and so forth. Terminologies in wording and errors in calculations were avoided, or else the respondents were informed of those cases before they start answering the questions. 3.5 Data Collection Procedures In the first place, a valid permission will be obtained from the University of Juba, College of Education. The Local Authority of Lopa County shall be informed of the purpose of study and the commissioner’s permission may be obtained too. After that, appointment shall be made with the County Paramount chief and his/her permission may also be obtained. After that, other appointments may be made with the Payam Executive Chiefs and Administrators, as well as with the selected NGO manager when administering the questionnaires. In collaboration with the chiefs and administrators of particular fields of study, the selected persons will be given questionnaires and investigated within a specific period of time (one or two days), because of time limit for the outcome to be submitted to the supervisor. 3.6 Data analysis After the information was collected, it was processed in order to drive a meaning. The data had been analyzed using both qualitative and quantitative methods, which involve editing, coding and graphing to interpret the findings. The statistics were described using the statistical packages for social sciences to generate frequencies and percentages of the data, which will then be categorized and reconstructed into comprehensive narratives and illustrations to give the meaningful expressions of the respondents.

CHAPTER FOUR DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION 4.0 Introduction This chapter deals with presentation, analysis and interpretation of the research themes as generated from the questionnaire to drive a meaning. The data is analyzed using both qualitative and quantitative methods, which involve editing and coding. The statistics are presented using the tables to generate frequencies and percentages of the intended data and then categorized and reconstructed into charts, lines and graphs to give the meaningful expressions of the respondents. The chapter is broken into four sections according to the themes generated from the research questionnaire.The demographic features of this research are covered here but their data are non- testable variables, since they have no effects on the results of this research. The table 1:showing the distribution of respondents according to their age range. Age range Frequency Percentage a) 18 – 29 19 47.5% b) 30 – 45 12 30% c) 46 and above 9 22.5% Total 40 100% The above table shows that the participants in the study comprised of three categories of age groups (18 -29, 30 -45 and 46+). It then reveals that the age group ranging from 18 - 29 was the majority (47.5%), followed by age group ranging from 30 - 45 with 30% and lastly bythose ageing from 46 and above (22.5%). Table 2: showing respondents’ distribution according to gender Gender Frequency Percentage a) Males 30 75% b) Females 10 25%

Total 	40	100%

The above table represents the respondents’ distribution accord to gender and it shows that more males (75%) positively responded to the study than females (25%). In the event of administering the questionnaires and conducting interviews, most females hesitated and others were unable to attempt the questionnaire mainly for reason that they are ignorant of what was required of them and others were could not read and write. Actually, some of them were not ready to involve in the study simply because they had no time as they were occupied by domestic duties. In most events, it was school girls and learned females who responded positively, but not any of them who did not go to school at all. This justifies that fact that most females in the area are illiterate and ignorant and being only committed to domestic responsibilities that their counterparts (males)

The above graph illustrates the respondents’ distribution according to their payams, and it shows that more people in Imehejek Payam (52.5%) positively responded to the study, followed by those in Obunge Payam (30%). The populations selected in Dorrik and Lohutok Payams were less responding with fewer scores 10% and 7.5% respectively. The differences in scores between the highly scoring and lowly scoring payams of the same county was because of the shortage of questionnaires, some of them just heisted to respond, others were not able to read and write, and the time to continue conducting face to face interview in the field was very limited. The table 3: showing the respondents’ distribution according to time stay in Lopa County. Period of stay Frequency Percentage a) Less than 5 years 6 15% b) Over 5 years 34 85%

             Total 	40	100%

The above table shows that 83.3% of the selected respondents have been in the area for a period from five years and above. This means that the information they provide is true according to their long experiences of life in the county and must be considered valid.

The above chart illustrates the respondents’ distribution according to their employments, and it shows that many of the respondents (57.5%) are unemployed, and some of them (37.5% are government employees. The NGO and self employments have the lowest estimates of approximately 2.5% each, implying that there are fewer employment opportunities provided by the NGOs operating in the area. Similarly, it impliesthat self-employment services such as small-scale business, commerce and trade are not successful in the area. Figure 5: Respondents distribution according to their educational levels

The above graphillustrate the respondents’ distribution according to their educational levels, and it plots the distribution of respondents according to their educational levels, showing that majority of those who responded positively (72.5%) have reached the university levels or graduated; followed by those who have reached secondary levels (20%) and then lastly those who have ended or are still at primary level (7.5%). Thus, most educated persons were ready to answer the questions because of their ability to read and write. Others who have not gone to school did not take part in the study because theysimply wished to refuseto be interviewed and were not able to answer the questionnaires due to their inability to read and write.

The above pie chart illustrates the distribution of respondents according to their marital statuses with the number of married population (72.5%) larger than the unmarried population (27.5%). The table 4: showing the respondents’ distribution according to their religions Religion Frequency Percentage a) Christian 30 100% b) Muslim 0 0% c) Others 0 0% Total 30 100%

From the above table, we see that all 100% of the selected persons who responded positively were Christians, which means Christianity is the major religion in the area; or else, other religions like Islam may be practiced but none had been selected, because it is not true that the believers of other religions disliked the research.

4.1 Root Causes of Underdevelopment in Lopa County This section discussing the root causes of underdevelopment in Lopa County. Figure 7: showing respondents’ believe on the root causes of underdevelopment

The above linear graphillustrates the root causes of underdevelopment in Lopa Count, and it plots the lack of unity as the major root cause with strong magnitude estimated approximately42.5% of the respondents’ views supporting the assumption of the researcher, followed byconflict and civil war with 22.5%,then by corruption and lack of skilled labor with 12.5% each, and lastly by poor leadership with 10% of approximate estimations. A separate question was set forth to evaluate the respondents views on whether it is true or not true that alcoholism also contributes to the underdevelopment in Lopa County, in which options “yes” or “no” were put forward in the below table for respondents to make choices; and hence, a subsequent question was given for those who believe that the assumption is true to explain how it contributes. Table 5: showing respondents’ opinions of alcoholism as one of the major causes of underdevelopment Believe Frequency Percentage a) Yes 38 95% b) No 2 5% Total 40 100%

The above table presents the respondents’ views on whether it is true or not true that alcoholism also contributes to underdevelopment, and it shows that more respondents (approximately 95%) believe that it is true than those (approximately 5%) who do not believe in the assumption.According to those who believe, alcoholism leads to laziness, loss of thinking capacity, idleness and wastage of time, begging and gambling,criminal activities like theft, loss of energy and talents, misuse of resources, reluctance, poor planning and failure to accomplish the task, ill-health and vulnerability to diseases and poverty, violence and failure to pay school fees for the education of children, and so forth. From this analysis, it is clear that alcoholism is the major cause of underdevelopment in Lopa, but what could be the best solution to its addiction? An open-ended question was given for respondents to suggest any other causes of underdevelopment, which might have not been mentioned in the hypothetical statements. On their own, few respondents pointed out that the insufficient training or lack of capacity building, domestic violence and the mountainous physical environment of Lopit land are some of the causes of underdevelopment in the county.

4.2TheMajor problems of underdevelopment

Figure 8: showing the major problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County

The above bar graph illustrates the respondents’ measure of the problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County, and it plots high level of illiteracy as the major case with approximately 40% level of magnitude, followed by high level of insecurity with approximately 25%, then by absolute poverty and employment with approximate levels 15% and 10% respectively. Illiteracy is the source of ignorance and ignorance is the enemy of success in life and thence the root cause of underdevelopment in the society, whereof Lopa is not exceptional.

4.3 Conditions of Living, Sources of Livelihood and Potential Resources in Lopa County This section explains the respondents’ views about the conditions of living, sources of livelihood and the potential resources in Lopa County with emphasis on the people’s levels of economy, housing standards, and means of transportation. a) Major Economic Occupations in the area Figure 9 below shows the major economic occupations in Lopa County

The above graph illustrates the respondents’ believes on the economic occupations in Lopa County, and it shows that arable farming and cattle herding are the chief economic occupations in the area with a joint approximate rate of 87.5%, followed by gathering and bee hiving with approximate rate of 7.5% and then lastly by hunting and fishing as well as commerce and trade with each sector estimated to be at the rate of 2.5%. b) Main Sources of Livelihood in the area Figure 10 shows the main sources of livelihood in Lopa County

The above chart illustrates the sources of livelihood in Lopa County, and it shows that food crops are the main sources with estimated rate approximately 60%, followed by monthly salaries with an estimated rate approximately 27.5%, then labor wages with 7.5% and lastly animal products with only 5%. Others like rents and business profits are less reliable to the population, as they are shown to be 0% each. This means that the county is much dependent of subsistence agriculture with no even little surplus sold in local market. This is clearly seen from the fact that business profits and rent benefits are rated each 0%. If business is 0% in the county, it implies that the type agriculture practiced by the indigenous population is only meant to produce goods that are being consumed at home with nothing sold of bartered. c) Housing Conditions in Lopa County The table 6 below shows the respondents’ views on the various types of housing assumed to be found in the area with intention to evaluate the housing conditions of the indigenous population. Type of housing Frequency Percentage (%) a) Concrete 2 5% b) Semi-concrete 6 15% c) Mudded and grass-roofed 32 80% Total 40 100%

The above table reveals that the many families (80%) in Lopa County live in mud-walled and grass-roofed houses, some (15%) live in semi-concrete buildings and only few (5%) live in concrete or decent buildings. This implies that the majority of people are under poor living conditions, and only a few of them are under fairly decent conditions of living and these may be found in new sites under the mountain, as almost all the Lopit settlements are still on the steep slopes the mountain base. d) Means of Transportation in Lopa County Generally the means of transportation include roads, railway lines, airport and others which involve the use of foot, bicycle, motorcycle, vehicle and so forth. The graph below (figure (viii)) illustrates the means of transportation in Lopa County with an attempt to evaluate the most alarming indicator of underdevelopment in public sector. This graph plots the use of foot in transportation as the most common means approximately estimated to be 72.5%, followed by vehicle with 15% and then by bicycle and motorcycle with 7.5% and 5% respectively. Other means of transportation, like airplane, ship and trains are not there in the area. Hence by transportation, we mean the movement of goods and services from one place to another. This therefore implies that goods and services in Lopa County are being taken from one place to another mainly by the use of foot and sometimes by cars, bicycles and motorcycles; but not by any means related to air, water and railway lines. The graph below shows the means of transport in the area. Figure 11: line graph showing common means of transport in Lopa County

From the above line graph, we see that transport by land using vehicle is somehow frequent than the use of bicycles and motorcycles because the roads in Lopa are very remote; and of course there are different types of vehicle, of which other like land cruisers are strong enough to move in the area despite difficulties. The photos below show how vehicles struggle to move in Lopa County. e) Potential Resources An open-ended question was given for sampled population to list some of the potential resources in Lopa County that could be used for the development of the area if they are properly exploited. The respondents listed several items including groundnuts, sorghum, cattle, sheep and goats, honey, wildlife reserves, timber, ostrich feathers, land, gum, ebony, bamboos, oil (from olive trees, groundnuts, sesame, ostrich bones and skins, palms, and coconuts), limestone, diamond, gold dust, iron, aluminum, tax revenue and others.

4.4 Strategies and Policies Overcoming the Problems of Underdevelopment in Lopa County This section presents data on respondents’ views of possible strategies and policies for overcoming the prevailing problems of underdevelopment and achieving development in Lopa County. Options were put forward and respondents’ views were measured as shown in the following tables: a) Strategy forthe establishment of facilities A question was set to investigate whether people would agree or disagree that the following facilities could be easily developed in Lopa County: Electricity, tarmac road with durable bridges, supermarkets and big shops, decent hotels and lodges, university and referral hospital, radio, TV and other media stations. In regards to the establishment of electricity in Lopa, only 30% of respondents agreed but 55% of them disagreed, and the remaining 15% did not have any idea about the possibility or impossibility of the assumption. In regards to the construction of a tarmac road with durable bridges, 70% of the respondents agreed with the assumption but 20% disagreed, and 10% did not have any idea about it. In regards to opening supermarkets and big shops in Lopa County, 57.5% of the respondents agreed with the assumption but 17.5% disagreed, while 25% had no idea about the development. In regards to an opinion on building decent hotels and lodges, 60% of the respondents agreed but 20% disagreed and also 20% had no idea about the development. With an opinion on the establishment of the university and referral hospital in Lopa County, 52.5% of the respondents agreed but 22.5% disagreed, while 25% had no idea about the development. In regards to the respondents’ opinions on the establishment of radio, TV and other types of media in Lopa County, 65% of them agree and 20% disagree with the assumption, while 15% have no idea on whether it is possible or not as indicated in the table. b) Specific opinions on the typesof Electric power to be established in the area A specific question was set to measure the respondents’ perceptions on whether one of these types of electricity can be developed in Lopa Count: hydro-electricity, or geothermal electricity.Based on their choice of any one of the two, the respondents were asked to explain why one power can be developed and not the other. The respondents’ views were analyzed and measured as seen in the table below and the reasons for the choice of one not the other type of power are provided thereinafter. Table 7: showing respondents’ opinions on the type of electricity to be established in Lopa County Power Frequency Percentage a) Hydro-electricity power station 13 32.5% b) Geothermal power station 19 47.5% c) No choice 8 20%

          Total 	40	100

The above table shows that those respondents who think that geothermal power can be easily development in the area are (47.5%) more than those who say it is hydro-electric power (32.5%). The remaining 20% of the respondents say neither hydroelectricity nor geothermal can be established. This question caused a lot of controversies. Those who believe that hydro-electricity can be developed argue that dams can be constructed in deep mountain valleys to collect water enough for sustaining power stations and others say water can be drilled using solar power and be stored in dams for sustaining hydro-electric power stations. Others further say water from the flat mountain rocks can be harvest into well constructed ground water tanks and then supplied to the hydro-electric power station using wind power or solar energy. On the other hand, those who think geothermal electricity can be established rather than hydro-electricity argue that there is no permanent river in Lopa where turbines or hydro-electric power stations can be erected or built to generate electricity, because it needs very high water currents or deep water source like a lake or sea. Others believe that, unless huge capital is used to divert water from the Nile to Lopit area or unless high technology is hired to create a deep water source in the area, hydro-electricity cannot be developed in Lopa County, except geothermal because it is that power which can be generated from the rocks on Lopit Mountain. Another group of respondents think that both hydro-electricity and geothermal electricity can be developed in Lopa but the work will cost the government in terms of finance and experience. This group argues that, the used of huge capital and high experience can make it possible but yet all these must be hired, because the level of technology and capital generation capacity in Lopa are very limited and may not afford hiring foreign expertise. There are also those who believe that neither hydro-electricity nor geothermal electricity can be established in Lopa simply because of lack of technology coupled with lack of capital, lack of determination and above all corruption. c) Strategy for the expansion of Urban centers in the area Opinions were also sought on whether or not the four payams of Lopa County (Lohutok, Obunge, Imehejek, and Dorrik) will rapidly develop into large urban centers if their various villages on the mountain slop are relocated down and amalgamated into only four settlements near the highway, and the respondents’ views were measured as seen in table (m) below. Table 8: showing respondents’ opinions of the relocation and amalgamation of Lopit villages to create large urban centers in Lopa County Opinion Frequency Percentage (%) a) Strongly agree 35 87.5% b) Strongly disagree 1 2.5% c) May be 4 10% Total 40 100% The above table shows that the 87.5% of the respondents strongly agree with the opinion on the strategy for relocating and amalgamating the four payams of Lopa County, but 2.5% of them strongly disagree whereas 10% of them doubt that it may be. d) Policies for possible Solutions to the Problems of Underdevelopment in the area A question was set forth to test the respondents’ opinions on the following policies as necessary for combating the prevailing problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County:  Poverty reduction through the provision of basic needs such as food, clean water, shelter and others. In response to this assumption, 92.5% of the respondents agreed, 5% disagreed and 2.5% had no idea.  Improvement of people’s standards of living through the provision of health, education, security, commercial and trade services. In response to this87.5% of the respondents agreed,7.5% disagreed and 5% had no idea.  Uplifting people’s status through the fairprovision and broadening of employment opportunities. In response to this assumption, 87.5% of the respondents agreed, 5% disagreed and 7.5% had no idea.  Raising the economy of the county by channeling huge capital and resources into the investment projects in agriculture, infrastructure, peace initiatives and capacity building.In response to this hypothesis, 97.5% of the population agreed, 0% disagreed and 2.5% had no idea.  Improvement of the standards of living of the poor people through direct transfer of income or revenue shares from the source to benefit them. In response to this hypothesis, 77.5% of the respondents agreed, 10% disagreed and 12.5% had no idea. Based on the above policy analysis, services delivery to the people of Lopa can be prioritized according respondents’ agreement with the assumptions of the needed services from the highest percentage (97.5%) to the lowest percentage (77.5%) hereof as follows:  Improvement of agriculture, development of infrastructure, peace initiatives and capacity building  Provision of basic needs, such as food, clean water, shelter and others  Provision of health, education, security, commercial and trade services  Provision and broadening of employment opportunities  Supporting the poor or disadvantaged group with money of subsidies

e) potential Roles of Government, NGOs, Youth, Women and Civil Society Organizations in fighting the problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County The respondents’ opinions on the roles of various groups in reducing the conditions of underdevelopment in Lopa County were sought using an open-ended question and the responses were analyzed using a qualitative method to measure and prioritize the data based on the percentages of the data collected. The target groups included the Government authority, NGOs, Youth and Women. The suggestions put forward by the respondents to be presumably the roles of these groups were as follows: (i) The role of government To reduce the conditions of underdevelopment in Lopa County, the respondents suggest that the government should provide quality education, good health care, protective security, improved means of transport and communication, sustainable peace, food security, job opportunities, good governance and planning, opportunities for capacity building trainings and so forth. Programs for these services are prioritized based on the percentages of the data collected from respondents’ views as presented below. Figure 13: showing respondents’ suggestions of development priorities for Government

The above graph illustrates the respondents’ views on the priorities to be considered by the government in trying to ensure that the underdevelopment problems in Lopa County are solved. Thereof, the respondents suggest that the government should consider education, health, security and transportation as the basic priorities; and peace building, communication and agriculture as the secondary priorities; whereas town planning, provision of jobs and capacity building as the tertiary or last priorities. In special regards to education, 15.3% of the respondents believe that illiteracy is the source of ignorance, which is the major problem of underdevelopment in Lopa, and they suggest that the government should fight it by improving the level of education. More primary, adult and secondary schools should be established and the existing ones have to be expanded and developed to accommodate the increasing populations of learners. The government has to lobby and avail scholarships for secondary and university students with special consideration of female learners, and Girls’ Boarding secondary and primary schools should be established to increase females’ enrollment in schools. A technical secondary school has to be opened in the area to produce a number of technicians including surveyors, mechanics, engineers, and so forth. School equipments and learning/teaching materials should be often supplied to every school and teachers working conditions should be improved and their payments have to be upgraded. The government should also enact and enforce rules that can force the parents to send all children to school considerably at early ages (4 -5 years old). Concerning health, 15% of the respondents believe that lack of proper health care is the source of high mortality rate, ill-physical health conditions and low life expectancy which are the major problems of underdevelopment in Lopa. They therefore suggest that the government should improve the health conditions of people in the county by establishing more health facilities including a referral hospital and more new health care centers in the area, expanding the old ones and availing enough equipments and medicines, operation apparatus, electricity and technical health personnel; while making sure that the working conditions of health workers are improved and their payments are upgraded. Hence, this will encourage them to accomplish their tasks effectively. Concerning security, 14.7% of the respondents believe that cattle raiding, robbery and killing of innocent people are the sources of insecurity, which is a severe problem facing people in Lopa County, being created by criminal youth with false assumptions of gaining wealth and societal pride. They therefore suggest that the government should provide enough security and ensure stability in the county by establishing police stations and deploying energetic policemen in all the payams. They also suggest that the government should introduce and enforce the law to reduce the rampant criminal activities (cattle raiding and killing of innocent people) that create insecurity in the area, by building a prison warden at the county headquarters Concerning transportation, 13.3% of the respondents believe that the remoteness of roads is the source of inaccessibility, which is one of the major problems of underdevelopment in the area. They therefore suggest that the government should improve the transportation conditions of Lopa County by constructing tarmac roads with durable bridges in the area. This will ensure easy access and the movement of goods and services within the area and from the production areas to the state capital. This will boost business, and hence development in the county.

In regards to peace, 7.3% of the respondents believe that the underdevelopment problems facing Lopa is a result of conflicts between villages within the county and the external threats posed by the hostile neighbors like the Buya, Toposa and Murlei communities. They therefore suggest that the government should promote peace by reconciling and unite the warring groups in the area and enforce the law against warmongers, in order to ensure mutual interaction and cooperation with the neighboring communities. According to them, peace enables the government and the NGOs to accomplish their planned programs successfully in time, hence development. Thus it is the role of government to carry out of support peace building programs in the area.

Concerning communication, 6.7% of the respondents believe that lack of access to media services is one of the major problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County. MTN line was the only telecommunication network established in the area in 2014, but it did not cover all the areas and even got spoiled in late 2015. Currently, there is no media service accessed in the county, with exception of some radio waves, such as South Sudan National Radio and Mirraya FM in Juba, and Radio Emmanuel and 97.5 Fm Radio of Eastern Equatoria in Torit. Therefore, the respondents suggest that the government should improve the communication system in Lopa by installing telecommunication boosters and a radio station in the area. In regards to agricultural economy, 6.3% of the respondents’ views presume that poverty is one of the major problems of underdevelopment in Lopa. To eradicate this problem and develop, the respondents suggest that the government should improve the agricultural economy by introducing modern system of farming (commercial agriculture) and enforcing the use of modern farming equipments, such as tractors and ox-plough tools, training farmers on how to use modern chemicals (pesticides, herbicides and insecticides) and granting them loans and access to banking so as to increase production and capital for further investment in the long term development projects. They further suggest that the government should invest much capital in agricultural production and introduce the irrigation system to avoid inconveniencies in the growing periods due to global warming. Agricultural lands should be demarcated into plots with feeder roads across the fields and linked to the main road for easy movement of goods and services within the production area and to the county and state markets. The payment of labor wages in form of currency should be introduced to replace the communal free labor in order to attract more youthful workers. Concerning town planning, 5.7% of the respondents believe that Lopa County can develop if the government ensures effective planning and budgeting to avail funds for relocation of people down from the mountain to new sites along the main road as well as demarcation and surveying of those sites to create towns. The various villages should be amalgamated into few but large settlements according to the existing and proposed administrative units or payams. Town planning involves the allocation of spaces for public utilities, such as markets, feeder roads, boreholes, health care centers, schools, churches, sports’ grounds, government offices, courts, and so forth. Thus effective town planning results into the urbanization of or expansion of towns. In regards to employment, 5.3% respondents believe that unemployment is one of the problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County, suggesting that the government should provide rural populations with enough job opportunities and improve the working conditions and upgrade the payments of the existing employees. The authority in Lopa County should ensure the employment of skilled or technical workers in the public services according to their qualifications and experiences. But the unskilled or unclassified workers should be employed based on their capabilities, experience and behavior, regardless of formal qualifications. In regards to capacity building, 4.7% of the respondents believe that the underdevelopment problems in Lopa County prevail due to lack of skills and experience among the working force, suggesting that conducting capacity building programs with workers, youth and women could be the best way of fighting the prevailing problems of underdevelopment in the area, as it improves the working and increases the innovative skills of the people in work. They presume that it is the role of government to promote the working and business skills of the people through capacity building training programs and to empower them to carryout development projects such as income generating industry (modeling of pots, mats, weaving of baskets and so forth), carpentry, welding, saloons, brick laying, road and bridge construction, cooperative marketing and farming, riding, driving, and so forth, hence increasing income and production for the development of the area. This calls for the establishment of vocational training schools in the area. The remaining 1% of the respondents’ views supports the provision of financial assistance and basic needs to the poor. This program is rated to be lest important because it is believed that, if the above priorities are accomplished and the general situation in the county is improved, the environment alone will determine the fate of the poor groups. For instance, the relatives and well wishers may support those poor individuals or families with their own wealth. However, it is also important that the government sometimes thinks of supporting the poor financially and in kind. (ii) The Role of NGOs The non-governmental organizations (NGOs) also have great role to play in solving the prevailing problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County. According to respondents’ views in this case, the NGOs should also help people by investing much capital and experience I health, education, agriculture, capacity building, peace initiatives, sensitization, and so forth. They also have the role of creating job opportunities, supporting income generating projects, funding sport activities, providing relief food, construction of roads, drilling boreholes and harvesting rain water, supplying electric power, establishing and maintaining media services, discovering underground wealth (mining), conserving environment and wildlife, and so forth. Based on the percentages of the respondents’ views on the value of what the NGOs should contribute, the programs could be prioritized as shown below. Figure 14 shows respondents’ suggestions on development priorities for NGOs

The above surface graph illustrates the prioritized programs that should be adapted by the NGOs operating in Lopa County in carrying out their development projects in the area. The priorities were determined by measuring the respondents’ opinions, whereby the percentages ranging from 60% - 80% with symbol purple represent the higher top priorities, which include health (74%) and education (71%). The percentages ranging from 40% - 60% with symbol light green represent the secondary priorities, and it is only agriculture (42%). The percentages of respondents’ views ranging from 20% - 40% with symbol red represent the tertiary or third class priorities, which include provision of employment opportunities, capacity building, peace building, funding micro-economic projects, and awareness or sensitization programs. The percentages of respondents’ views ranging from 0% - 20% with symbol blue represent less important programs to NGOs and may be the responsibility of the government or other groups to accomplish them, which include carrying out of funding sport activities, provision of relief food, construction of roads, water projects, media installation and management, environment and wildlife conservation, energy and power supply and so forth. Concerning health program, the respondents suggest that the NGOs should establish health care centers in every village, equip and help manage them, supply medicines and operation apparatus, train medical personnel and other health workers, and provide them with some financial incentives in form of hard currency in addition to government salaries, provide scholarship for secondary and university students specializing in health sciences and so forth. Concerning education, the respondents also presume that it is the vital role of NGOs to promote education by building schools in every village, equipping and help manage them, supplying learning and teaching materials, training teaching staff and other menial workers, and providing them with some financial incentives in form of hard currency in addition to government salaries, availing scholarship for secondary and university students specializing in education and so forth. Concerning agriculture, the respondents presume that it is the role of NGOs to improve agricultural economy by introducing modern system of farming, providing organized farmers with scientific equipments like tractors, ox-plough tools and help manage them, supplying them with seeds and modern chemicals and drugs (herbicides, insecticides and pesticides) for treating crops and animals, training farmers on modern technologies and skills, and granting them access to loans and financial incentives for further investment in long-term projects for self-reliance. Concerning employment, the respondents suggest that the NGOs should avail jobs to disadvantaged youth with special consideration of school drop-out girls, for instance cleaning compounds, cooking and cleaning the offices. Indigenous graduates should be given a priority in appointment rather than foreigners, and be paid in form of hard currency equally with foreign employees. This will reduce the level of unemployment in the county, hence reduction in poverty among the rural population. In regards to capacity building, 32% of the respondents believe that it is the role of the NGOs to provide training for rural youth to build up their capacities on modern technology and innovation in various aspects of life, including physical architecture, engineering, entrepreneurships, scientific farming, and so forth. This calls for the establishment of youth centers and vocational schools in the area, where training will be conducted. Concerning peace and awareness, the respondents believe that it is the role of NGOs to implement projects on peace building. They should sponsor and initiate peace conferences, workshops, seminars, and dialogues between the communities. The NGOs should also sponsor sports’ activities in order to promote peace and mutual interactions among the youth, and this will create togetherness and unity among them. They should also sensitize people to be aware of the importance of peace and stability in the society and educate them on human rights and the rights of citizenship in the country. All in all, the respondents’ views assert that the NGOs have vital role to play side-by-side with the government, youth and women, especially in sectors prioritized above. (iii) The Role of Youth In most cases, youth are the ones who create the problems of underdevelopment and they themselves can also play a vital role in solving those problems. Based on respondents’ opinions, youth should engage in income generating activities such as commercial agricultural production, small-scale or large-scale trade, welding and carpentry workshops, laying bricks for sale, business riding and driving, saloon business, modeling of handicrafts, bee hiving, poultry and animal rearing among others. The youth also have to help the government in providing security in the area by protecting the people from both the internal and external criminals, and by coordinating the government in the enforcement of both the law and societal norms. As energetic manpower, it is their role to provide the government and the NGOs with the needed labor and available resources in the area for the development of the area, and be role model in showing interest in work. They should play an important role in discouraging their fellow members from evil activities like cattle raiding, robbery and killing of innocent people, as well as from being idle, drunkards and sexually immoral. The youth can promote peace by carrying out sports activities, peace conferences, workshops and sensitization. They can also encourage children to go to school through campaigns against illiteracy and by being exemplary in the society. Youth can also initiate projects and contribute funds or materials for civic education and capacity building programs, and for carrying out health and hygiene awareness campaigns and entrepreneurship skills training and so forth. Youth can also serve as the watchdog to the government and NGOs activities in the area and to the behavior of area political leaders, helping in fighting corruption and injustice in the county. (iv) The Role of Women In a face-t-face interview with a certain business girl (21 years old), who was selling tea in her place, I asked her verbally while conducting my research that: “what can a woman, especially a girl like you, do to help develop the society?” She responded saying, “according to me, a woman can do everything like a man to help develop the society. Educated women can work with the government and even with NGOs, but unemployed women or girls like me can do some small business jus as what I’m doing now, selling tea, baking breads or mandazi or chapats and sell them on daily basis to generate income that will support the family so that what the father suppose to provide out will be now a surplus to be used for development”. She also added that, a woman can engage in agricultural production like the growing of crops and rearing domestic animals to help provide enough food commodities for both consumption and commercial purposes in order to reduce poverty, especially hunger and starvation at home”. What the lady is trying to say here is that women should engage in income generating activities such as small-scale trade, crops growing and animal rearing. Other respondents suggested that women should work hard to encourage girls to go to school and make sure that women rights and the rights of children are respected and their socio-economic statuses are uplifted in the society. They should ensure that women are trained and provided with knowledge of becoming self-reliant. Besides, they should act as agents of peace and unity in the society, promoting the rule of law and societal norms among themselves and also among men, condemn corruption and injustice made by men in the society, discourage the evil acts and behaviors of their counterparts (men), such as cattle raiding, warmongering, killing of innocent people, sexual assault, cheating of ignorant poor persons, stealing, corruption, discrimination and so forth. For instance, women can discourage cattle raiding and war by stopping to praise the raiders and those who kill. Others say women should educate their daughters on how to conduct themselves and become fruitful in the development of the society. It is their role to advise adolescent girls to avoid early sexual relationships with men in order to avoid early pregnancies and unwanted marriages, and to sensitize other sexy women on how to behave and to give birth to children so that they would be the mothers with integrity in the community. Women should also carry on their shoulders the role of being suit mothers by showing love and concern to children, including the orphans in the community. They should mobilize support from the Government and NGOs for street and disadvantaged children and for the widows and poor old women. Others also suggest that women should participate in political leadership, planning, decision making and implementation of programs together with men – they should not stay away back from men when dealing with national or societal issues. Others further say it is a vital role of women to discourage men from alcoholism by rejecting customers who have become physically unhealthy because of too much drinking of alcohol, or else by regulating or abolishing brewing. Other respondents also say women are good treasurers and so they should take the lead in revenue collection, such as taxation and custom duties, and be custodians of development funds, instead of their corrupt and merciless counterparts (men)m, but they should avoid being luxurious and extravagant. The respondents also point out that it is the role of women to initiate and carry out women capacity building and empowerment programs. They have to lobby financial assistance and grants from the government and the NGOs to accomplish their projects, and so forth. (v) The Role of Civil Society Based on the respondents’ views, the civil society can play the following roles: Defend human rights of people, particularly the poor and disadvantaged groups Encourage micro-economic activities and lobby loans to support business people on the ground and train them on entrepreneurships so as to ensure self-reliance.

Should use the law to stop conflicts and hatred among the youth in the county;

Watch over any issues related to corruption, injustice, sexual assault, and disputes among the people. Ensure the conservation of environment and wildlife; promote health and education, and fostering developmental activities Promote peace, unity and mutual interaction among the people; Sensitize and train people on their civil rights and responsibilities according to the law; Protect the civilians from dictatorship, oppression, torture and harassment. Sensitize people on the importance of reconciliation and conflict resolution amicably. Empower youth and women organizations and encourage youth to participate in socio- cultural and economic activities. Discourage criminal activities in the area by enforcing the law.

Generally, the data provided above indicates that the causes and problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County are numerous and complex in nature. However, the research shows that alcoholism, disunity, civil war, and mountainous physical environment of the area are the root causes, whereas illiteracy, insecurity, poverty and inaccessibility are the major problems faced in the area. In terms of economy, arable farming is the most common practice, making food crops like sorghum and groundnuts to be the main sources of livelihood in the area. The housing conditions indicate the sign of low living standards with almost the entire population in the county living in muddy-walled and grass-roofed houses. The settlements are not demarcated (as seen from the photos) because the inhabitants live on rugged slopes, implying that latrines are cannot be excavated in the area; hence people are prone to epidemic diseases. Roads are impassable and people mostly move on foot; even strong types of vehicle like land cruisers hardly travel in the area, creating shortage of commercial goods and services in the area. Generally, the underdevelopment conditions in Lopa County are very low, characterized by high level of ignorance, high mortality rate, rampant criminal activities, and poor physical health of people, to mention but a few CHAPTER FIVE SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.0 Introduction This research was carried out to find out the root causes and problems of underdevelopment in Lopa County and to provide possible solutions to the alarming problems with emphasis on the nature of education, health, business, economy, housing, physical environment, transportation and communication. A standard questionnaire consisting of close-ended and open-ended questions was produced, reproduced and administered to at least forty (40) respondents selected among the sampled population with intension to measure their perceptions of and opinions on, as well assuggested solutions to the problems faced by the inhabitants of the county. In the process of study, the physical environment and human features of the area were assessed during a trip using the observation method, and a camera was used to capture some pictures for valid evidence of the findings; whereas written and oral interview methods were used to collect the required data from the selected respondents.Therefore, this chapter discusses the findings and provides the summary, conclusion, recommendations and limitation of thestudy. 5.1 Summary This study finds that alcoholism, disunity, inaccessibility, conflict, civil war, shortage of labor, corruption and poor administration (leadership) are the root causes of underdevelopment. Meanwhile illiteracy is found to be the major problem facing the area, followed by insecurity. Others like poverty and unemployment are also alarming but to some extent, not like illiteracy and insecurity. It also finds subsistence agriculture to be the main economic occupation of the inhabitants of Lopa County, with arable farming being commonly practiced. Others like commerce and trade, hunting, fishing, gathering, and bee hiving are regarded as less important. Given the fact that arable farming is the common economic activity in the area, food crops like sorghum and groundnuts, to mention but a few, become the main sources of livelihood to the inhabitants. Others such as salaries, wages, rents and profits are of low gain like crops. Because of low production due to poor scientific skills and shortage of capital (lack of money), the living standards of inhabitants is very low, under which many families (80%) live in poor houses built with mud and grass. only a few families live in semi-concrete and concrete houses. Also because of lack of capital for development, the means of transport and communication in the area are very poor, with roads impassable to the extent that people only move using foot. Even the establishment of electric power station in the county is said to be impossible due to lack of technology, capital and expertise. However, hydro-electric and geothermal power stations can be established in the area if high technology and huge capital are borrowed. Other facilities like hotels and lodges, super markets, hospitals and high institutions of learning may not be easily established due to low business and socio-economic capabilities. In short, the research has discovered that lack of unity for purpose, the impact of alcoholism, conflict and civil war, lack of skilled labor, corruption, and poor administration (leadership) are the root causes of underdevelopment in the area. It also discovered that Lopa is underdeveloped because its people are living on the rugged mountain slopes, which makes any development activities difficult; unless people move down. Illiteracy, insecurity, poverty, unemployment and inaccessibility are found to be the major problems faced in the area. Not only that, the study also finds that people’s living conditions in the area are very low, as the majority of people live in mad-walled and grass-roofed houses, wall on foot and dependent on subsistence agriculture. A number of potential resources for development were also identified, including:groundnuts, sorghum, cattle, sheep and goats, honey, wildlife reserves, timber, ostrich feathers, land, gum, ebony, bamboos, oil (from olive trees, groundnuts, sesame, ostrich bones and skins, palms, and coconuts), limestone, diamond, gold dust, iron, aluminum, tax revenue and so forth. The study therefore recommends that the government in partnership with NGOs should relocate the various villages down from the mountain and amalgamate them into few settlements in order to create towns in the area, avail enough capital to invest in programs for the promotion education, improvement of health, expansion of agriculture, building infrastructure, provision of employment (job) opportunities, supporting youth and women activities, and fostering peace in the area. The suggested strategies and policies included reduction of illiteracy, insecurity, poverty, inaccessibility and unemployment problems through efficient service delivery and development of infrastructural facilities. 5.2 Conclusion In conclusion, this research highlights the array of pressing underdevelopment challengesfaced in Lopa County, indicating that the majority of the population is extremely illiterate, jobless and live under poverty line. Clear evidence is that majority of population do practice subsistence arable farming and animal husbandry with crops being the main source of livelihood upon which many families rely. Also, it indicates that many families live in mud-walled and grass-roofed houses and walk on foot. The research further gives clear evidence of woeful rates of disunity, insecurity, alcoholism and corruption among the population, beside poor infrastructure.With all these indicators, it is clear that the issue of underdevelopment in Lopa County is very complex and people’s standards of living are so low due to the impacts of several factors, including:alcoholism, disunity andinsecurity being the roots, as well as civil war, conflict, lack of skilled work force, corruption, poor leadership and so forth. The mostalarming symptoms include illiteracy, mortality, unemployment, poverty, and poor infrastructure, to mention but a few. 5.3 Recommendations The government in partnership with the NGOs should:  Avail capital to be invested in education, health, agriculture, roads and electricity in the area as the top priorities.  Mobilize people to accept the policy of amalgamation of various villages and be relocated from the mountain to new sites along the main road so as to ensure urbanization in the area.  Avail job opportunities and provide support to organized business persons, youth groups and women who engage in small-scale trade activities in order to ensure self-reliance among them  Support CBOs to carry out capacity building, peace building, health and environmental sensitization programs in thearea.  The youth should engage in agricultural production, income generating activities, sport activities and many other development programs. They should also cooperate with the government to provide security and labor in the area, so as to ensure peace and development projects are accomplished successfully.  Women should also engage in small-scale commercial activities, participate in politics, advice their husbands and children to refrain from cattle raiding, robbery and killing of innocent people, as well as from taking too much alcohol.  The civil society should cooperate with the government to enforce respect for human rights, good governance, and democracy in the area. The CSOs should also carryout sensitization programs on the rights and roles of citizenship, peace and health awareness. The researcher recommends that further researches need to be carried out in the following fields of study:  Factors contributing to high level of illiteracy in Lopa County  Factors for and possible solutions to the problems of disunity in Lopa County  Factors for and possible solution to the transportation problems  Factors for and possible solutions to the communication problems in Lopa County  Factors for and possible solutions to high level of insecurity in Lopa County etc. 5.4 Limitations The major limitations in the process of carrying out the research included but not limited to the following:  Insufficiency of research sources, such as text books, pamphlets or past research papers on the same topic. Since this is the first of its kind conducted in Lopa County  Financial constraints mounted with increased prices of papers, internet service, printing and labor  The area of study is far (approximately 200 km) from Juba, mounted with increased transportation fee and insecurity on the roads, which delayed the trip to the field of study.  The power of the laptop used was not reliable because the battery was very weak and could only live for less than an hour.

REFERENCES 1. Michael P. Todaro (1981): Economic Development in the Third World, Second Edition, Longman Inc. New York (USA) 2. Goh Cheng Leong and Gillian C. Morgan (1982): Human and Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, printed in Hongkong 3. Dr. Frith Jof Kuhnen (1987): Causes of Underdevelopment and Concepts of Development: An Introduction to Development Theories, the Journal of Institute of Development Studies, NWFP Agriculture Vol. VIII, Peshawa University (Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia) 4. Sudan Tribune Editorial (February 2, 2009): Corruption and Underdevelopment in Southern Sudan (Internet) 5. Geza Anthony (2010): Success in Economics for UACE, Fourth Edition, Bookshops Africa, Kampala (Uganda) 6. Daniel H. Comments off (February 7, 2013): Factors that Hinder Development in Africa (Google) 7. Stephen Ekokbe Awung (2015): A Critical Analysis of Underdevelopment in Africa (Google) 8. Aqeel Ahmed Rajpar (April 2015): Causes of Underdevelopment (Wikipedia, a Free Encyclopedia) 9. Rt. Rev. Enock Tombe (presentation 2015): South Sudan Context Analysis of the Surrounding Atmosphere since December 2013, Nyakuron Cultural Center. 10. Machok Atak (December 22, 2015): A Message to Fellow South Sudanese Youth, Sudan Mirror News Editorial (Newspaper) 11. Profesor Joshua O. Ator (Lecture Notes, 2016): Regional Development and Planning, University of Juba 12. Ibid (2016): Cultural Geography, University of Juba 13. Ukech Ujure Kidi (Lecture Notes 2016): South Sudan Economy, University of Juba 14. Oxford Anvance Learners Dictionary 15. Lopit Biography (google:www.Lopit/community.com)

the writing was done by Oduho Daniel Alex — Preceding unsigned comment added by 196.201.11.158 (talk) 10:59, 6 February 2017 (UTC)

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