Graduates and government officials pose for a photo at the Rumbek Vocational Training Centre after completing a three-month course in tailoring, basic computer skills, and hairdressing (Photo: Sudans Post).

RUMBEK—Lakes State authorities have announced a plan to exempt young vocational training graduates starting businesses from paying tax, as the government encourages practical skills to help address unemployment and limited job opportunities.

Gabriel Makuei Goljok, acting director general in the State Ministry of Labour, Public Service, and Human Resource Development, said his ministry would engage the State Ministry of Trade to consider tax relief for graduates entering the market.

“We will talk to the Ministry of Trade at the state level such that these learners who will go to the market and practice their skills can sometimes be supported because they don’t have anything at hand,” he said.

The remarks came on Wednesday, October 15, 2026, during the graduation of 25 trainees, including 19 women, from the Rumbek Vocational Training Centre after completing a three-month course in tailoring, basic computer skills, and hairdressing.

He said many graduates lacked start-up capital and needed support to establish their businesses before they could meet their tax obligations.

Goljok also said the ministry planned to register graduates operating in the market to help authorities identify their activities and assess their support needs.

Meanwhile, Charles Anau Cirillo Majok, director general in the State Ministry of General Education and Instruction, urged the graduates to use their skills to earn living rather than depend solely on government employment.

“We also need to look at other markets and other sectors to show support to our community. We don’t have to depend on partners. We don’t need to depend on the government. We also need self-reliance so that they can be able to go to the market and get money to support their families,” he said.

He highlighted the importance of vocational training as a way of equipping young people with practical skills to start businesses, find employment, and support their families.

Majok said the government was working to strengthen vocational training centres under the national technical and vocational education and training (TVET) policy, which seeks to expand access to practical skills.

The program was conducted by the Disabled Agency for Rehabilitation and Development (DARD) with support from Oxfam.

For his part, Hakim Cipuouyuc Awur, DARD’s executive director in Rumbek, urged the graduates to put their training to use, describing the ceremony as the beginning of their entry into the labor market.

“Today’s event is not the end of the training, but it is the beginning of your journey to the world of the national market,” he said.

“TVET skills are rare, and also they open opportunities for those who want to learn new skills and use them for their contribution to the national development goals as well as for individuals’ benefits and sustainable economic growth.”

Nyankor John, a hairdressing graduate, thanked DARD and Oxfam for providing the training and said the graduates intended to apply their new skills.

“You give us practical knowledge and skills that we shall use tomorrow in our work. You have shown us what happens when purpose meets excellence. We promised that the knowledge we have received will not end here,” she said.