Mbale residents decry shortage of water
Shortage. A resident fetches water at Amatso stream, which is situated in Mooni Parish in Bunghokho-Mutoto Sub-county in Mbale District. Residents in some areas have decried shortage of safe water. PHOTO BY VINIKHET MANANA
What you need to know:
- The LC5 chairperson, Mr Bernard Mujasi, reiterated that the district is following up with the Ministry of Water and Environment to ensure locals have access to safe water.
Mbale. Residents of Bunghokho-Mutoto Sub-county in Mbale District have raised concern over shortage of safe water in the area.
The most affected residents in the villages of Bumadi, Nabwesha, Namakyele, and Nabesolo all found in Bumboi and Namalogo parishes, said they trek for more than four kilometres to fetch water from streams in Mooni Parish.
Local leaders say the water shortage started two years ago after a gravity water scheme, which was constructed by Water Aid, a non-governmental organisation, to supply water to the residents, was reportedly vandalised.
Ms Jalia Muyama, a resident of Nabwesha Village, said women and the elderly are the most affected, adding that children have also been forced to absent themselves from school in order to fetch water.
Ms Hafash Oduwa, another resident, said accessing the stream is also a challenge because the bridge on the route was washed away.
“The bridge got damaged last year and it has never been replaced by the leaders. They just keep promising,” Ms Oduwa said.
The LCI chairperson of Nabwesha Village, Mr Malika Wepukhulu, said his office had written to the sub-county leadership over the issue.
“Since the water supply system got vandalised, we have made attempts to engage concerned leaders but it has not yielded any positive result,” Mr Wepukhulu said.
Mr Wepukhulu, however, blamed some of the residents who cut water pipes while digging in their gardens and never bother to report to concerned authorities.
The LC2 councillor representing Bumboi Parish, Mr Abbas Namugowa, said: “We used to have a borehole but it also broke down, leaving the locals with no option but to use the stream, which they share with animals.”
The LC5 chairperson, Mr Bernard Mujasi, reiterated that the district is following up with the Ministry of Water and Environment to ensure locals have access to safe water.
Access to water
Uganda has experienced two decades of economic growth, leading to large population movements from rural areas to informal settlements around urban centres.
61 per cent of Ugandans lack access to safe water and 75 per cent do not have access to improved sanitation facilities.
