South Sudan
- Population: 10.9 million
- People in Need: 8.9 million
Our Impact
- People Helped Last Year: 1,191,678
- Our Team: 282 employees
- Program Start: 1985
How a South Sudan Farmer Defied Odds and Confronted Hunger in His Community
Onions have endless nutritional benefits — from antioxidants to anti-inflammatory properties. In some regions around the world, they’re used in traditional medicine. In the United States, they’re delicious on pizza or sandwiches. And in western South Sudan, this unassuming root vegetable has transformed an entire community.
Chan’s community was plagued by food insecurity. “In those days, life was very difficult,” he recalled. “People had to resort to hunting or fishing. At the river, you may try to fish but end up with nothing.”
Chan Agany Joseph has lived in Gogrial West County for his entire life. He grew up tending to livestock, especially goats. As an adult, he took up tobacco farming but could barely make ends meet. Hunger was rife in his village, and he was committed to finding a solution. He needed to try something new — so he defied all expectations and turned to onion growing.
In South Sudan, onion growers are typically women. Men like Chan are not expected to grow produce. Nevertheless, the farmer knew that tobacco was no longer a viable plan: “Tobacco farming had some problems,” he said. “First, it is not a food source. You can get food by selling tobacco during the rainy season after the tobacco is harvested and sold. But during the dry season, there was hunger for us farmers.”
Chan’s community was plagued by food insecurity. “In those days, life was very difficult,” he recalled. “People had to resort to hunting or fishing. At the river, you may try to fish but end up with nothing.”
Chan teaches his eldest daughter Adut Agany about the art of onion growing so she can one day grow onions herself.
Everything changed when a nonprofit visited Chan’s village and introduced a program that connected mothers with new farming practices. Women were taught how to plant and grow onions — and Chan observed its success from afar. Dedicated to learning more, Chan joined the group through sheer determination.
“In the beginning, I started growing onions in a small area close to a school,” he said. “People used to laugh at me and say ‘Ha, do you think you will benefit from this? This is a woman’s work.’ Regardless, I kept on trying and trying.”
Eventually, the nonprofit left Chan’s community due to a lack of funding. The farm, which had only just begun sprouting into new beginnings, instead withered away. When staff from Action Against Hunger learned about Chan’s village, they decided to continue the work of the previous nonprofit and invite even more people to learn onion growing.
Over the past two years, Action Against Hunger has been supporting Chan and his fellow villagers through a program aimed at supporting new farmers.
“When Action Against Hunger came, we were proud of our farm again,” said Chan.
Action Against Hunger trained Chan and a Mother– to – Mother Support Group on basics of onion growing. The training also introduced Chan to income-generating techniques. Together, Chan and his fellow villagers began harvesting and selling the onions at a local market. The economic impact was undeniable. For the first time in many years, the village’s economy was stimulated by onion growing.
Today, Chan has saved enough money to send his children to school. “With onion farming, I can buy uniforms and textbooks for my children to attend school,” he said. “With the excess money, since I do not have a bank account, I buy goats or cows. Before I could not afford all this, but with the support from Action Against Hunger I can afford all these things.”
Tackling Hunger in South Sudan
Over 6.3 million people are experiencing acute food insecurity in South Sudan, and 2.1 million children are suffering from severe acute malnutrition, the deadliest form of hunger. The crisis has only grown in recent months following climate shocks, deadly flooding, economic disaster, and the influx of refugees from the conflict in Sudan. Learn more about how our teams are confronting this crisis.
Selling onions has also allowed Chan to pursue his own education and put food on the table for his whole family. Now, Chan can breathe freely without the stress of recurring financial hardship.
“Onions have a lot of market value,” he said. “One bag (110 lbs) is valued at 70,000 South Sudanese Pounds (over $530).”
Chan also encouraged men in his community to break down traditional gender roles and farm alongside the women. He knew that the economy would only grow if the community banded together. Chan inspired Action Against Hunger to start a new support group for men in the community.
Eventually, men who didn’t initially understand Chan’s approach started to see the value of vegetable farming — and the importance of gender equality within their village. As they gained this perspective, they began growing onions alongside Chan.
It takes a village: Chan’s wife, Ayak Manyaut, leads the Mother-to-Mother Support Group and educates people on the importance of onion growing.
Currently, around thirty men work with Chan alongside other female farmers. Men share the responsibility of protecting the onion farm by maintaining their fences made from palm trees. “I explain to the men if we want to make sure this area is protected, the fence around is our responsibility,” said Chan. “We have to protect our onions from animals in the area.”
Chan continues to spread his knowledge to neighboring communities and his children. He has a clear message to newcomers: “Do not listen to judgment or be afraid of barriers you may have, instead look at the benefit you are getting through this farming.”
About Action Against Hunger in South Sudan
Action Against Hunger has been working in South Sudan since 1985. Our teams travel to remote, hard-to-reach areas, often as the only organization providing fresh water and malnutrition treatment. Our lifesaving programs help farmers grow rice in flood waters, farm onions, build new waterways, access emergency services, rebuild livelihoods, and so much more.
