“I DON’T HAVE TO WALK LONG DISTANCES FOR WATER” – SARAH’S STORY

Sarah stands with a 10 litre water container on her head, in her purple short sleeved shirt and black skirt in front of a makeshift tapstand, on the one side of the tapstand is a 10,000 black plastic tank and on the other is an incomplete mud and wattle house, within an arms reach are little children fetching water in plastic containers, in the background is a woman with a smiling gaze and across is a middle aged man who is muttering to the kids not to splash the precious water down.

13 year old Sarah is one of the 2000 refugees who have fled fighting in the DRC and have since been settled in Kyaka II refugee settlement. On a normal day, she is desperate to complete her daily chores, she knows her mother expects her to collect water every day for cooking, washing and bathing.

“When we had just arrived in Kyaka II, we used to fetch water from a swamp which was very far, the water was dirty but we had no option” she adds “we didn’t expect to get flowing water, but I was excited when Oxfam put this tank here, it has made our life easier and we are happy”

A short distance away, is Sarah’s household, a temporary mud, wattle and tarpaulin house crammed with utensils and beddings, besides it is her mother who has just finished fixing the family meal.

“I am pleased with the quality of water they give us everyday, the water truck has never stopped coming to bring water for this tank” said Sarah’s mother who we met when we followed up Sarah at her home. “I am not worried when I am cooking food, or washing utensils because the water we use at home is clean”

Sarah has been studying in DRC in Primary four and expects to continue with her studies here in Uganda. “During school days, I don’t have to walk long distances to the valley to look for water, the water is right here near our home, I reach school early.” She had asked us about the opportunity to continue with her school in the settlement.

Oxfam with funding from UNHCR has constructed and installed temporary water trucking tanks in Mukondo and works are underway to extend piped water and build a steel reservoir tank to provide sustainable access to safe and clean water thereby reducing walking distances and increase on productivity time for the settled refugees and asylum seekers.

Story first published in Oxfam blog: https://uganda.oxfam.org/latest/stories/%E2%80%9Ci-don%E2%80%99t-have-walk-long-distances-water%E2%80%9D-%E2%80%93-sarah%E2%80%99s-story-0