Community Initiative for Partnership and Development (CIPAD)
Background and history
Community Initiative for Partnership and Development (CIPAD) came into existence as a result of the motivation and personal initiative of its founding members who wholeheartedly seek to enhance the socio-economic status of the impoverished communities especially women, youth, children and elderly. Living in war affected South Sudan particularly Northern Bahr El Ghazal State, the founding members were not stranger to hardships faced by the underprivileged communities.
Having strategies to overcome economic and social challenges that impoverished communities are facing, the founding members registered CIPAD at Northern Bahr El Ghazal state level with Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC) and Ministry of Social Development from 2010 to 2016 supporting communities with different capacities depending on funding from partners and well-wishers.
In the year 2017, the founding members of the organization decided to register the organization at national level with Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC) obtaining registration number 902 as National Organization mandated to operate across the country as humanitarian and development organization.
The key areas of interventions include human rights; sustainable food security and livelihood; women & youth economic empowerment; peacebuilding; justice; education; health & nutrition; WASH; and people with disabilities participation and inclusion.
Our efforts have developed lasting relationship with government at all levels, nongovernmental organizations, United Nations agencies and corporate organizations as also with the communities, individuals and groups with whom we have worked.
We have come a long way following a small beginning in 2012, and have implemented a wide variety of projects related to child rights for change; food security & livelihood; women & youth economic empowerment; peacebuilding; community security & community policing; gender base violence; access to justice; reproductive child health care; trauma healing and psychosocial supports; HIV/Aids awareness; COVID 19 awareness; quality education; boreholes rehabilitation and capacity building of water user committees in different Bomas and Payams in the five counties of Northern Bahr El Ghazal State. While implementing different developmental projects, our thrust has always been on working through people’s participation and constructive engagement of government institutions and community leaders for project ownership and sustainability.
At CIPAD, we have always believed in the capacities and capabilities of the communities, and have always strived to channel their hidden energies for the betterment of society at large. Our efforts have always been directed towards creating an environment that is conducive of enhancing opportunities to local people to think and act positively.
We have endeavoured to develop skills and competencies of the local communities with a view to enabling them to operate and maintain the assets created through the implementation of the projects on sustainable basis.
This philosophy of ours has led us to the adoption of a holistic and participatory approach to rural and urban development. We believe in inclusive approach, covering all the sections of the society, particularly the impoverished people in the Bomas, Payams, Counties and States in the Republic of South Sudan. We work with existing village level fora (and creating new ones wherever necessary) through Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) approaches, principles and techniques.
Vision
A society that is fair, resilient, developed, peaceful, and self-reliant with enhanced well-being
Mission
To shape polices, and drive actions that advance relief and sustainable development by promoting partnership, implementing and empowering community-led initiatives with focus on achieving fairness, resilience, peaceful coexistence, self-reliance, and enhancing of well-being in the society.