Gurtong Trust - Peace and Media Project is an independent, not-for-profit, community-based project, which aims at removing all ethnic, political or personal obstacles on the way to unity, peace and mutual respect among South Sudanese. It was while in the UK that a South Sudanese Internet Technology (IT) expert, Napoleon Adok G*i, was inspired by South Sudanese in Europe to establish the Gurtong we
bsite. Funded by the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs and surrogated by the London-based Africa Educational Trust, the project was established in London in 2002 as “Gurtong Peace Project.” On return to Kenya, Napoleon registered Gurtong as "Gurtong Peace Trust” in 2004 and set up an office in Nairobi, from where he managed the project until his departure at the end of 2005. Headed since 2006 by a South Sudanese veteran journalist and author, Jacob Jiel Akol, Gurtong was registered in Juba, South Sudan, in 2007 as “Gurtong Peace and Media Project”, an NGO. In combining the names under which it is registered in both Kenya and South Sudan, the full name is now “Gurtong Trust – Peace and Media Project”, generally shortened to just “Gurtong”. Radio Programmes: Funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), Gurtong started in 2008 production of pilot radio programmes with 100% local content on mostly issues of peace, culture, health, education and gender. In 2009, the Open Society Institute joined the Norwegians in supporting Gurtong’s Radio Program production, by a grant awarded through the Open Society Network Media Program in 2009 - 2010, mostly on elections and related issues in the 2009 - 2010 period. Meanwhile in 2009, and still funded by the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the old Gurtong Website has been upgraded to the current one by Copenhagen-based Brand X IT company.
