South Sudanese Youth Join AI and Peace-Leadership Academy

The South Sudan National Youth Union partnered with the International Peace Youth Group (IPYG) to run the Y-BRIDGE Academy, a three-week online programme combining artificial intelligence education with peace-leadership training, starting 18 April 2026.

The programme targeted young South Sudanese participants, delivering sessions remotely given the country's limited in-person training infrastructure outside major towns. Organisers framed the pairing of AI literacy with peace-leadership content as a deliberate response to South Sudan's dual challenges: building basic digital and AI skills among youth while also addressing the country's fragile peace process.

As of the programme's launch, South Sudan had not initiated formal national AI strategy or policy development, leaving grassroots and youth-focused initiatives like Y-BRIDGE among the more visible AI-related activity in the country during 2026.

The academy's online-only format reflects the practical constraints facing AI skills-building in South Sudan, where electricity access, internet connectivity, and formal training infrastructure remain limited compared with many other African countries.