Warning: Trying to access array offset on value of type bool in /usr/www/users/urnnet/a/story.php on line 43 Humanitarian Agencies Struggle to Maintain Hygiene at Nyakabande Refugees Transit Center :: Uganda Radionetwork
According to Kitentera, they spend about Shillings 40 million monthly to empty the toilets. She says that the situation is worsened due to the lack of cesspool emptier in the entire Kisoro district, which forces them to hire one from Kabale, about 73kilometers away.
Humanitarian agencies are
struggling to maintain hygiene at Nyakabande refugees transit centre in
Kisoro district due to the huge number of Congolese refugees.
The transit
center is home to 17,717 Congolese refugees at the Nyakabande
transit center who fled heavy fighting between M23 rebels and Armed
Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) on March 28 in
Rutshuru territory, North Kivu province, eastern Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC.
More than 3000 refugees
have been transferred to Nakivale refugee camp in Isingiro district from
Nyakabande. However, the Humanitarian agencies say that they are facing
hurdles to maintain hygiene at Nyakabande refugees transit center due to
limited sanitary facilities.
The agencies are currently forced to empty the only two
toilets at the center twice per week, which costs them huge sums of money. Our
reporter visited the toilets at the transit centre and found some of the stances closed after being filled up.
Jackeline Kitentera, the Emergency Coordinator of
Care and Assistance for Forced Immigrants at Nyakabande transit center
says that they empty 460 cubic metres of faecal matter from the toilets on a
monthly basis.
According to Kitentera, they spend about Shillings 40
million monthly to empty the toilets. She says that the situation is worsened
due to the lack of a cesspool emptier in the entire Kisoro district, which forces
them to hire one from Kabale, about 73kilometers away.
//Cue in: “one of the….
Cue out: …simple thing,”//
Abel Bizimana, Kisoro District LC V Chairman, says
that due to the high number of refugees, many of them have to use toilets
in the neighbouring trading centre of Nyakabande.
//Cue in: “food that are…
Cue out: …are refugees,”//
Hajji Shefiques Ssekandi Ssengoba, the Kisoro
Resident District Commissioner,
says that they are aware of the problem. Ssekandi
says that a similar problem is
in Bunagana town council where refugees left most
of the toilets full. He says that efforts are being done by the
government to avail more facilities.
