____________

YUMBE - Nusura Tiperu, a resident of Ukaliko village in Arafa sub county in Yumbe district was preparing a meal when a team of officials from the European Union (EU) and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) arrived at her extremely neat home.

The officials, led by Grace Freedom Kwiyucwiny, the state minister for Northern Uganda, Wednesday September 6, 2023 gathered around a newly installed water tap as they admired the homestead when the 70-year-old woman emerged from a grass-thatched house. 

With a big smile, Tiperu hopped and knelt before the guests. 

At her age, Tiperu said, she had never used piped water, leave alone having such a facility in the entire sub county. (All Photos by Eddie Ssejjoba)

Speaking in her local language, Lugbara, Tiperu welcomed the visitors and thanked them for transforming her life and the rest of the residents by installing a safe clean water source in her compound.

At her age, she said, she had never used piped water, leave alone having such a facility in the entire sub county. 

“May the good Lord reward you abundantly,” the overjoyed woman said as the minister and Caroline Adriaensen, the head of cooperation for the EU Delegation to Uganda and the UNCDF regional technical advisor, Dr. Dmitry Pozhidaev and other officials from the ministry of local government and other ministries cheered her. 

The scheme, a pilot project, is supposed to benefit households, schools, health centres, churches, and mosques in two sub-counties, and already, 108 families have been connected with water taps on their doorsteps, with 10 public standpipes installed.

She quickly opened the tap, washed her skinny hands, and using her palm, drank the water. The minister and Adriaensen too washed their hands from the tap.

Tiperu is one of the beneficiaries of the 108 beneficiaries who have so far received water from the sh1.97 billion solar-powered Adibo Rural Growth Centre Piped water supply scheme located at Wanvuti village in Yumbe district, which was constructed by Akvo International SMC. 

The Ministry of Local Government under the Development Initiative for Northern Uganda (DINU) program implemented the EU-funded project.

Water is pumped for a distance of 25 km and is supposed to provide direct connections to homesteads and selected communal points, ten of which are already operational.

The scheme, a pilot project, is supposed to benefit households, schools, health centres, churches, and mosques in two sub-counties, and already, 108 families have been connected with water taps on their doorsteps, with 10 public standpipes installed.

At the commissioning of the project, mainly women holding placards, tree branches, and leaves danced and jubilated, saying the project had ended the suffering they had endured for years, including battering by their husbands. 

The husbands accused them of always delaying returning home while searching for water from dried-up swamps and water bodies, especially during long dry spells. 

The project pumps water for a distance of 25 km and is supposed to provide direct connections to homesteads and selected communal points, ten of which are already operational.

The women would be forced to move longer distances after failing to get water from one source.  

It is therefore because of a lack of clean safe water that many marriages broke up, girls defiled and impregnated and it became a major cause of high school dropout as children always reported late to school.

Joyce Tiko, a teacher told the guests that women would move with hoes to ‘scoop’ sand to access water and travel long distances back to their respective homes. Many women, she said, would wake up at midnight and walk in groups to search water, only to return mid-morning, to the anger and suspicion of their husbands.

Yumbe district women have a feel of clean water.

“We have been experiencing a high number of domestic violence cases in this area because men often suspected their wives were sleeping outside with other men, it has been a hell here,” she told the guests.

“But I, personally, have an installed water tap in my compound,” she said and praised DINU for extending water to the schools in the area.

“Teachers too, used to report late to school, big women used to assault children in the numerous conflicts that used to break out as people fought for a source of water,” she said, adding that many children would report to school at 10:00am, which she said led to poor performance.

The Aringa South Member of Parliament, Alioni Yorke Odria, thumping his chest, said he identified the water source and dag an ordinary borehole, which he later surrendered to DINU to construct a motorized solar-powered water supply scheme. 

He said there can never be peace without water and that the project is a game changer in the lives of people of Arafa. 

He, however, appealed to DINU to take over two other sources to cover two other sub-counties.

The project coordinator for DINU Eng. Paul Kasule Mukasa said Adibu water project is one of the biggest projects under DINU in the 18 districts of Northern Uganda.

Grace Freedom Kwiyucwiny (C), the state minister for Northern Uganda speaks to press and (2nd L) is EU head of cooperation Caroline Adriaensen.

It pumps water for a distance of 25 km and is supposed to provide direct connections to homesteads and selected communal points, ten of which are already operational.

He said the project was already benefiting other sectors like education, where 70% of school dropout was attributed to lack of water plus instabilities in homes. 

The Yumbe LC5 chairperson, Abdulmutalib Asiku, however, asked the EU and partners to consider funding more water connections and pledged that the district could allocate more funding to the provision of clean water to residents.

Joan Uwamaria, a communications officer in the ministry of local government enjoys the clean water.

The EU contributed sh150 million Euros for the entire project in Northern Uganda spread in 18 districts with various components. 

__________________

At the commissioning of the project, mainly women holding placards, tree branches, and leaves danced and jubilated, saying the project had ended the suffering they had endured for years, including battering by their husbands. (All Photos by Eddie Ssejjoba)

The Aringa South Member of Parliament, Alioni Yorke Odria opens one of the water taps.