Community Development Centre - CDC

Community Development Centre (CDC) is a South Sudanese non-profit, community-based organization dedicated to 'Building Strong and Resilient Communities.' It describes itself as a community centre run by a community, rooted in community-centred approaches and working for communities in the communities. Its mission is to work for the welfare of communities, poverty mitigation, and the development of marginalized segments through empowerment initiatives, technology, innovation, capacity building, educational programs, and the promotion of social, environmental, cultural, and healthful values. CDC's roots lie in a local community radio and cultural awareness project in Yei, South Sudan, known as 'RORO LOKA' (meaning 'Voice of the Land'), which aimed to bridge communities through understanding their unique diversities, promoting mutual respect, and addressing community issues through civic education and community-centred media. In 2015, by the petition of the communities and the action of four founding members, the organization was established under the name 'Community Development Centre (CDC)' as a non-profit national NGO, and it was duly registered in 2016 by South Sudan's Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC). The Centre provides community services and facilitates community-led programs toward community development. Its service areas are broad: health, peace, clean water and sanitation, culture, education, rights, media, sports, gender equality, microfinance, agriculture, food security and livelihood, advocacy, empowerment, and development. Concretely, CDC promotes community health, sanitation, and hygiene; provides clean water; fights HIV/AIDS; works on menstrual hygiene management (MHM) and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR); and addresses waste management. It fosters unity, promotes peace, and works for reconciliation, healing, and conflict resolution, while responding to the urgent needs of displaced and conflict-affected communities. It promotes culture, local community languages, and advocates for indigenous communities and their rights, and it works for gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, including fighting early marriage, dowry, and violence against women. CDC uses community media as a tool for social and behaviour change and community development. Among its flagship projects are HAGIGA WAHID ('One Truth' in Juba Arabic), a peace-building information management technology project aimed at countering the spread of harmful rumours that contribute to tensions and conflict in the Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement in Northern Uganda; and SOOT SEMEE ('Voice of Compassion' in Juba Arabic), a community-centred media project aiming at positive behaviour change and building peace and social cohesion among South Sudanese refugee communities. The organization operates in South Sudan and Uganda, with close links to communities and a strong emphasis on relationships and partnerships. Its executive director, Sebit Martin, has spoken of the organization's belief that communities achieve great things together.

Community Development Centre (CDC) traces its origins to a local community radio and cultural awareness project in Yei, South Sudan, known as 'RORO LOKA' — meaning 'Voice of the Land.' This initiative was aimed at bridging communities through an understanding of their unique diversities, promoting respect for one another, and addressing issues affecting the community through civic education and community-centred media. In 2015, in response to a petition from the communities and through the action of four founding members, the organization was established under the name 'Community Development Centre (CDC)' in South Sudan as a non-profit national NGO. The founders were concerned about the deterioration of cultural practices that maintained unique traditional heritage in the communities, as well as poor economic, social, and environmental conditions. The organization was duly registered in 2016 by South Sudan's Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC). From its base in Yei, CDC grew into a community concern organization dedicated to 'Building Strong and Resilient Communities,' aspiring to lead in community development in the region. It adopted a comprehensive approach, providing community services and facilitating community-led programs. Its work expanded across a wide range of sectors: health, peace, clean water and sanitation, culture, education, rights, media, sports, gender equality, microfinance, agriculture, food security and livelihood, advocacy, empowerment, and development. CDC's community media orientation, inherited from the RORO LOKA project, became a defining feature. It uses community media as a tool for social and behaviour change and community development. This approach is embodied in flagship projects such as HAGIGA WAHID ('One Truth'), a peace-building information management technology project aimed at countering harmful rumours that fuel tensions and conflict in the Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement in Northern Uganda, and SOOT SEMEE ('Voice of Compassion'), a community-centred media project promoting positive behaviour change and building peace and social cohesion among South Sudanese refugee communities. The organization operates in South Sudan and Uganda, maintaining close links to communities and emphasizing responsiveness, relationships, and partnerships. Its executive director, Sebit Martin, has articulated the organization's community-first philosophy, stating that communities achieve great things together.

• 2016

  CDC duly registered by South Sudan's Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC).

• 2015

  Community Development Centre (CDC) established in South Sudan as a non-profit national NGO by the petition of communities and the action of four founding members.

A community centre run by a community, rooted in community-centred approaches, working for communities in the communities; aspiring to lead in community development in the region.

• HAGIGA WAHID (One Truth)

  A peace-building information management technology project aimed at countering the spread of harmful rumours which contribute to tensions and conflict in the Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement, Northern Uganda.

• SOOT SEMEE (Voice of Compassion)

  A community-centred media project that aims at realizing positive behaviour change, and building peace and social cohesion among South Sudanese refugee communities.

1. 1Community Development Centre – CDC – Building Strong & Resilient Communitiescdc.ngo
2. 2Services – Community Development Centre – CDCcdc.ngo
3. 3The Centre – Community Development Centre – CDCcdc.ngo
4. 4Community Development Centre - CDCwikidata.org