09.06.11
New community culverts in northern Uganda can boost agricultural production and marketing. Now, the Danish Refugee Council plans to expand the project to empower local market access and improve livelihoods in remote areas of Uganda.
By Efiti Filliam
Senior Information Officer, DRC Uganda
The dust-covered white coloured vehicle manoeuvres its way through miles of thick dry grass towards Budro stream in the remote Yumbe district in northern Uganda. The vegetation is dry, mixed up with dust covering the stream bank. The bank has clusters of stagnant water held in river basin dents, a typical feature during dry season.
Inside the vehicle is a team of five people from the Danish Refugee Council, the district engineering department and a construction company. They are on a mission to inspect a project just finalised in a remote area of northern Uganda. The five people dislodge from the vehicle as they finally arrive to one of the crossings where the new culverts have been constructed. Moving casually while pointing at certain portions of the culverts they all seem to agree that the work is well done.
A milestone
To Engineer Ayumai Bernard the culverts on the five community roads is yet a milestone. These roads are crossed by notorious streams feared by local residents especially during the rainy season. As the engineer strolls on the new Budro stream culverts he looks for a few final details to be improved before the project can be deemed completed living up to all needs and standards.
Sustainable development
The Danish Refugee Council has worked in the West Nile region since 1999. As a well known and trusted organisation the Danish Refugee Council has again been assigned to support and implement a wide range of projects. These cover road works, local government development plans, and production and dissemination of Client’s Charter in a number of villages in rural areas of northern Uganda.
The Client’s Charter is a social contract prepared on principles of HAP (Humanitarian Accountability Partnership) between the service providers and the community. This enables improved monitoring of the quality and quantity of the services provided and paves the way for feedback from the service recipients and stakeholders.
Local decisions
The construction of culverts on five streams in Yumbe district is part of these projects and represents tangible proof of development, something that has been received by the community with enthusiasm. The five culvert projects were selected by the local communities and the Danish Refugee Council was permitted to install the culverts while the community was entrusted with the clearing of the bushes and routine maintenance.
Apangu Ombaju, a local engineer involved in the project, is now hoping to see the impact of the improved infrastructure. With the new and safe crossings over the stream local communities are encouraged to reach out to new markets to sell their agricultural produce.
Rainy seasons no longer isolate farmers
Isolation is a major constraint to many rural farmers, and a factor that prevents them from selling their agricultural products.
“Then what is the use of growing more when we cannot access market due to impassable roads,” says Asiki Swaib a farmer who has specialised in cassava growing.
Nearly three out of four in rural communities live and grow their crops more than five kilometres from the main road. During rainy seasons these farmers have no chance to reach markets and cannot sell their vegetables. Therefore, the culverts will open up for sustainable market access and can lead to improved livelihoods for the farmers on the other side of the stream.
Last year, Swaib harvested cassava from 30 acres of land, found it difficult to take the produce to the market.
“The road was impossible to pass and I had to hire labourers at a high cost instead of a lorry to take my cassava to the market.”
This year, Swaib plans to farm more land and will grow vegetables on additional 10 acres.
