Intellectuals from Eastern Equatoria’s Magwi County urge the government to prioritize the rehabilitation of roads and broken bridges before tabling the Limur Multi-purpose water and resource development project memo.
On 3rd October, the minister of water resource has revealed that South Sudan and Uganda are considering the construction of two dams for irrigation and water supply in Limur River.
The river is shared between South Sudan’s Magwi County and the Neighboring Lamwo district in Uganda. The $98 million project was presented by Pal Mai Deng, minister for water resource and irrigation.
However, the deputy information minister earlier reported that the cabinet delayed the project and tasked the minister to provide maps of the project area and do consultation with necessary stakeholders including communities.
The chairperson of Acholi Community Mr. David Otim expressed dissatisfaction over the memo, saying roads are dilapidated in his community and bridges are broken.
He said such interests that improves communities’ wellbeing have to be addressed before the dam project can be tabled for discussions or launched.
David Otim said Hon. Pal Mai should have known better to consult with the communities before tabling the memo.
“We are not happy as the Acholi community. What happened last week on Friday when the Minister of Water Resources gave a memo for the launch of the Limur Multipurpose Water and Development Project. In my community, we are not taking out public consultation without doing environmental impact assessment, without doing social impact assessment. So this one really took us by surprise, and we have rejected it as a community as a whole.” says David Otim, Chairperson Acholi Community in Magwi County
The community leaders urged donors and the government to observe protocols when dealing with issues involving communities and their wellbeing.
He says roads especially within the county are wearing out and require attention. he also says bridges that connects his community with the urban centers have been broken but priorities are not being given to rebuild them.
“And if the African Development Bank is serious, they want this project to go ahead, or the government wants the project to go ahead, they must use the right protocol. And we also, as the community, we have our interests, which is the broken bridges, the roads are dilapidated. Before doing something, if the government in Kampala have an interest, certain interest like that, we must first of all address the interest of the community.”
An MP in the Council of state has called for risk assessment and wider consultation between the two communities across borders.
Okello Odongto Lawiri believes that the communities can give their views only if they understand the context of the project.
“I don’t know if the ministry and the project initiators have done a risk assessment and then have done also consultation with the communities. But I think personally, if there is something like that, to me, the community of Acholi should be widely consulted from the side of South Sudan because I know this same problem is going to affect those ones in the side of Uganda as well. We need a wider consultation and we need time for us to understand the content and the context of the project itself. Then we give our views based on this.” says Okello Odongto Lawiri, an MP in the Council of States
Last week, farmers in Magwi County decried broken bridge which they say prevents them from transporting their agricultural produce to the national market in Juba.
The Amee Bridge connects Magwi County’s food producing region to the Nimule Juba highway.
Atepi Bridge which links South Sudan to Uganda’s Lamwo district collapsed on the 25th of August over heavy downpour.
Road networks across the region remains dilapidated as automobiles struggle to navigate movements.
