Rebecca Joshua Okwaci is a

South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...

ese politician, and a member of Parliament and the Chief Whip of the Ruling SPLM Party in the Transitional National Legislative Assembly as of 2022. She was the former Minister of Telecommunications and Postal Services and also the former minister of Roads and Bridges in the Government of the Republic of South Sudan. She is a "prolific peace campaigner and advocate of women's roles in peace", and she is a founder member of several Sudanese, South Sudanese or pan-African women's organisations, including being the Secretary-General of Women Action for Development. In December 2013, Jess Mathias of

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

described her to be an ideal role model for young girls over traditionally idolised women such as

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to the ...

and

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

Early Life

Education

Okwaci earned a bachelor's degree in English language, literature, and translation from Egypt's

Alexandria University Alexandria University ( ar, جامعة الإسكندرية) is a public university in Alexandria, Egypt. It was established in 1938 as a satellite of Fouad University (the name of which was later changed to Cairo University), becoming an indepen ...

, followed by a master's degree in communication development from Kenya's

Daystar University Daystar is a Christian liberal arts university in Nairobi. Daystar's original campus is close to Nairobi city centre, but there was no room to expand at that location. Therefore, in 1992 a new campus was built at Athi River, some 40 km to ...

Journalist

Okwaci, during the second Sudanese civil war in 1986, joined the newly-formed

Sudan People's Liberation Movement The Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM; ar, الحركة الشعبية لتحرير السودان, ''Al-Ḥarakat ash-Shaʿbiyyat liTaḥrīr as-Sūdān'') is a political party in South Sudan. It was initially founded as the political w ...

and began working as a journalist for Radio SPLA, where she became known as the "voice of the revolution".

Politician

In January 2015, Okwaci signed an agreement with her Kenyan counterpart Fred Matiangi to lay 600 kilometres of fibre optic cable alongside a proposed

Juba Juba () is the capital and largest city of South Sudan. The city is situated on the White Nile and also serves as the capital of the Central Equatoria State. It is the world's newest capital city to be elevated as such, and had a populatio ...

Nadapal Nadapal is a community in the south west of Kapoeta East County, South Sudan near the border with the Rift Valley province of Kenya. The Nadapal belt is an area stretching southward from the border with South Sudan to Lokichogio in Kenya. The v ...

Eldoret Eldoret is a principal town in the Rift Valley region of Kenya and serves as the capital of Uasin Gishu County. The town was referred to by white settlers as Farm 64, 64 and colloquially by locals as 'Sisibo'. As per the 2019 Kenya Population ...

road. Okwaci led the South Sudan delegation, and said that this cable would improve South Sudan's connectivity with the rest of the world, and would "spur development, create job opportunities, and bring about peace and stability". The cable laying is expected to be finished earlier than the projected road completion date of 2022.

Women's rights and peace activism

Okwaci is a founding member of several organisations, the Sudanese Women Association, based in Nairobi, Sudanese Women Voice for Peace, and Sudanese Women Empowerment for Peace. She is the Secretary-General of Women Action for Development (WAD).

References

Living people South Sudanese politicians South Sudanese women in politics South Sudanese journalists South Sudanese women's rights activists Year of birth missing (living people) Daystar University alumni South Sudanese women journalists {{SouthSudan-politician-stub