UNESCO creates opportunities through skills development in Wau, South

Shelves lined with bottles of green and orange multipurpose cleaning soap fill a small shop in Wau, where Monica and Theresa chat in Arabic as they arrange their products. Wau is the capital of Western Bahr el Ghazal State in north-western South Sudan, near the borders with Sudan and the Central African Republic.

The two met during a UNESCO Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) course in soap making in Wau in 2024. Today, they run their own small business, supplying cleaning products to customers in their community.

Before that, Monica ran a small home baking business, selling cookies to neighbors and friends. Soap making was entirely new to her. After completing the training, she spent three months in Warrap training others and passing on what she had learned.

Now back in Wau, she and Theresa manage their small operation together, producing soap and shampoo. Materials can be difficult to source, and business is not always steady, but they persist.