This blog is written by Pernille Ironside, a child protection specialist for UNICEF, who serves as the organisation's global focal point on the use and recruitment of children by armed forces and groups. She is currently based at UNICEF Headquarters in New York.

We arrive in the small town of Awiel at the start of a trip that will take us through three states in Southern Sudan and close to the troubled areas of South Darfur in the north of Sudan.

My mission is to see how UNICEF and its partners are supporting the release and reintegration of children associated with the Sudanese People's Liberation Army (SPLA). A former rebel group and now the standing army in Southern Sudan, the SPLA fought against the Sudanese Armed Forces for more than 21 years until a peace deal was signed in 2005.

The agreement called for the release of all SPLA 'child soldiers' within six months. Although 1,500 children were discharged in the first two years, many returned to the SPLA convinced that they had no alternative. An estimated 1,000 children are still thought to be within the SPLA's ranks.

At Wunyik, the headquarters of SPLA Division 3, the commander claims there are no 'child soldiers' here and that all were released in 2005 following orders, yet 73 boys have been identified. "Only the children of soldiers currently on the frontlines or whose fathers have died in battle are here now," we are told. They show us a school in the military camp where more than 1,300 students attend classes under trees. The students are 'SPLA children' and children from the neighbouring village.

The commanders later acknowledge that at least 50 boys who were demobilised earlier had returned. But since they are now studying in the SPLA school, the commanders feel they should not be of concern to us. We remind them it is not only child combatants who must be released, but also all boys and girls below the age of 18 who perform any kind of labour such as guards, porters, cooks, and under-age girls used as 'wives'.

The next day we visit two projects that support vulnerable children, including former 'child soldiers', with life skills, vocational skills and schooling. The point is to see what reintegration services are already being provided in the area, and their potential for expansion.

In a new residential vocational training centre operated by Save the Children Sweden in Malualkon, 121 students are learning carpentry, masonry, agriculture, tailoring and embroidery. It is a promising initiative, but I am not sure if such a residential approach could cope with the larger caseload of children that we are looking to support, or how much that would cost.

LOST CHILDHOODS

At present it is taking too long between the identification of children in the armed forces and their return home. Often many months pass and children just drift away. One of my recommendations will be the establishment of interim care projects such as foster families.

In Wau, another project managed by Save the Children UK with UNICEF support, provides classes to more than 50 children who have missed years of primary schooling. There is also a youth club where street children and others have access to counsellors, recreational and life skills activities. Good work is being done here, but limitations exist particularly for older children who do not necessarily wish to return to school, who do not live close to a school or vocational centre, or who have been supporting their families with their military salary.

Providing these young people with a viable alternative to military life is a challenge. We will have to consider small income generating activities as part of the programme - but these types of activities themselves require significant training and follow-up with implementing organisations and the government. Is Southern Sudan ready for this?

In the SPLA unit in Mapel, we meet about 20 children who are aged between 12 and 17. Speaking with them in a small thatched shelter, they appear filled with anxiety, scepticism and questions about what will be in store for them on leaving the army. A number were demobilised and, finding no support back home, returned to the SPLA. A few are orphaned.

Nearly all of the children indicate they would like to go back to school if they could, preferably remaining together as a group. Their bonds run deep, no doubt forged through having lived through many difficult experiences together.

An hour away, in Tonj, we meet Abraham, 15, who is attending primary school and lives with his uncle and extended family. He has no desire to return to the military. Still, life is not easy. Abraham has no money to pay the school registration fee or to buy a uniform. The family's income is very limited and there are at least 12 mouths to feed.

What this trip has reinforced for me is that there are no simple solutions to the issue of former 'child soldiers' - the particularities of Southern Sudan must be reflected in our response, if we are to succeed in our goal of making up for so many lost childhood years, and helping these young people contribute positively to a peaceful future for Southern Sudan.

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