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Jonglei governor holds consultative meeting with state dignitaries

Author: Garang Kuol Mamer | Published: June 9, 2024

Dignitaries from Jonglei State meet in Juba. (-)

About 200 public figures including politicians, community leaders, and experts from Jonglei State held a consultative meeting in Juba on Saturday to discuss issues affecting the state, including ways to mitigate the looming flooding.

The meeting, summoned by newly appointed Jonglei Governor Mahjoub Biel Turuk, deliberated on the recent IGAD forecast of catastrophic flooding expected to submerge low-lying areas including the state counties.

During a presentation, Water and Irrigation Minister Hon. Pal Mai, underscored that data from the IGAD climate center and the hydrometric stations in the country show increased water level in Lake Victoria.

He said the current rainy season in the Greater Lakes region indicates potential increase in volumes of water in rivers and lakes in Burundi, Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda and DRC.

He noted that all the rivers and lakes in question are tributaries of Lakes Victoria, which flows downstream to South Sudan.

“The government of Uganda currently released 2600 cubic meters of water downstream, it is massive and ever released amount,” Mai said.

The minister said the huge volume of water will submerge settlements, health centers, schools and roads, leading to massive displacement of people, and water born disease.

Mr. Mai recommends that the government should monitor the Nile water level, give timely weather forecast, and stay in touch with the government of Uganda on information about the amount of water released.

The water minister said the government is committed to timely disseminate of information, establishing active and reliable communication channels with the government of Uganda, and engaging the government of Sudan on how to mitigate floods.

“The government has established risk disaster committee, evacuation of people in worst cases, procurement of heavy machines needs to be deployed use for construction of dykes, improving drainage, venerability mapping.”

On his part, Mr. Thon Kuany Arok, a Consultant Engineer, gave a list of recommendations on what the state government must do to mitigate the flooding that has since engulfed three quarter of the region and displaced thousands of people.

He urged Jonglei populations, especially those who are at the lowlands, to promptly relocate to high grounds, as a precautionary measure.

“When an order is given for people to move to high areas, we should be in a position to respond to this emergency calls. The existing structures needs to be strengthened and reinstated by all cost as a way the most immediate response to the alarming floods.”

Mr Kuany added that preparedness should be either in securing the living spaces for people to settle in, or in medium and long term, involve rehabilitation of current dykes and building permanent structures.

“The preparedness is of twofold, first is the short term which involves securing the living spaces people settled now, medium term which involves rehabilitation of current dykes and building permanent structures.”

According to him, the floods preparedness requires collaborative efforts from both the community, state, national government and international agencies.

The expert said the World Food Programme is currently struggling to reinforce the dyke around Twic East County but without sufficient machinery.

He further called on the state government to join the initiative by hiring more equipment.

 

 

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