South Sudan: “The only thing that works in the camps is the water provided by SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL”

When there is no rain, if the paths in the UN House camp in Juba, South Sudan, are not muddy and flooded, heat becomes the enemy of thousands of men, women and children. They are surviving here with “only 7 kg of food per person per month,” says Mohamed, who left Somalia a few years ago, hoping to find peace somewhere else. He had found some peace in Malakal, in the northern part of the country, but had to run for his life. “We were being targeted because we were vulnerable. We came here to get away from the violence. But life here is really hard. There are no rules in this camp, and we live with nothing. The only thing that works a little is the water, thanks to the people of SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL. Life would be a lot tougher without them.” Every day in Juba camp, our teams have been providing water to more than 37,000 people through 24 water points in each corner of the camp’s three areas, to prevent long waiting lines.

“Thanks to SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL, we can drink every day.”

Hoth Saur Luac has been living here for more than a year. He has been helping the endless newly arrived people, and recognises the work done by our teams: “SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL was the first organisation to help us. Thanks to them, we can drink every day. They also built toilets ,they listen to us when we report a malfunction and they consider our complaints before coming over to make the repairs. We can’t complain about that, even though life in here is a bit like in prison. We can’t go out, it’s too dangerous out there. That is what I tell the people arrive here every day.” Simon Okuch Chol and 7 of his 8 children are among those who continue to arrive on a daily basis, trying to make some room for themselves despite overpopulation. “I live with one of my nieces but I can’t stay there. I’m even scared when I go out of her place! I have to find a place to live where my children and I will be safe.”

Fighting epidemics

Unfortunately, by trying to get away from violence, the new arrivals are having an impact on the life within the camp.The more people come, the less space can be used to build water points, toilets or more showers, to add to the 185 that have already been built. The situation can worsen, considering that increased population has a direct impact on hygiene, especially on access to one of the 312 altrines that have been built and are being maintained by SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL. If people don’t have access to toilets, camp occupants will defecate in open air, which entails risks of epidemics. “There has been a resurgence of cholera in the camp in the past few days. Most of it is concentrated in POC* 3. However, if nothing is done about it, it may spread to other areas in the camp,” believes Lotte Van’t End, qui is coordinating monitoring and evaluation of needs. To fight water-related diseases and the lack of hygiene, our teams are conducting hygiene awareness sessions for displaced populations. “We go to each house, show videos, and explain how to clean a jerry can to prevent the dirty ones from contaminating the water,” Marcella Ondekova, the deputy head of mission explains. “We are also in charge of waste management from the latrines we build. We unclog them regularly, treat them chemically and we try to keep up the drainage system so they don’t overflow every time it rains.” Our teams are involved in this daily work, involving community leaders and inhabitants, to help preserve the humanity that war has taken from them.

*Centre for the protection of civilians