Photographer captures beauty of Dinka people, South Sudan's cattle keepers

Things have not been easy for South Sudan.

Its civil war began in late 2013 and has overwhelmingly affected civilians who are treated as prey by soldiers from all sides. The war quickly escalated from a rift between President Salva Kiir from the Dinka ethnic group, and exiled vice-president Riek Machar of the Nuer people into a full-fledged crisis, with deadly clashes between rivals, cattle raiding, revenge killings, famine and so much more.

Rape, torture and murder have come to define the forgotten conflict, while efforts to bring peace have failed continuously.

The constant upheaval of conflict, illness and starvation has left many Sudanese severely malnourished.

The conflict has also taken a toll on the economy, which has been struggling since the south of the country seceded in 2011, taking with it three-quarters of its oil output.

The African nation's economy recently deteriorated even further after Khartoum devalued the pound currency and slashed its wheat price subsidies, leading to riots across the country in January.

However, despite all the misery, drought and famine, an AFP photographer has managed to capture the beauty hidden among it all –the simple charm of Sudanese cattle keepers carrying out their daily routines along the River Nile, a tradition that has lasted centuries.

Members of the Dinka tribe, tending to their cattle day and night, move to the country's lowlands to set up camps near the Nile during the dry season from December to May.

It is sort of an annual migration, a traditional way of life for the Dinkas, these nomadic pastoralists.

It's a fascinating sight for many, showing how cattle play a central role in the life of many African people, and are used as a store of wealth.

South Sudan's cattle grazers in pictures (AFP Photo)

Den, 14, does not attend school but works as a cattle keeper, cook, cleaner and aid to her brother. The Dinka comprise of many independent but interlinked clans. (AFP Photo)

South Sudan's cattle grazers in pictures (AFP Photo)

A boy tends a cow in the early morning. The Dinka set up big cattle camps near the Nile to make sure their animals are close to grazing pastures. (AFP Photo)

Dragging away a dead cow that was killed by a scorpion, Mingkaman, Lakes State, South Sudan on March 4, 2018. (AFP Photo)

Cattle herders gather for church prayers. The sacrificing of oxen has traditionally been a central component of Dinka religious practice. (AFP Photo)

South Sudan's cattle grazers in pictures (AFP Photo)

South Sudan's cattle grazers in pictures (AFP Photo)

Cattle keepers Achiek Butich (left) and Makal Maker pose with their weapons, used to protect their herds in a nation where conflict has broken out in recent years. (AFP Photo)

A boy uses white ash from burned cow dung as a mosquito repellent. (AFP Photo)

South Sudan's cattle grazers in pictures (AFP Photo)

South Sudan's cattle grazers in pictures (AFP Photo)