Africa-Press – South-Sudan. Vice President James Wani Igga is calling for proper water resource management in the country to avert possible calamities.
The VP for Economic Cluster said the many deaths arising from intercommunal conflicts can be avoided if perennial flooding in the country is controlled,
“There is a need for the high allocations in the budgets for the minister of Water Resources and Irrigation for the improvement of the lives of the people,” VP Igga said during the launch of the World Bank report on water in South Sudan.
“We should allocate enough resources to mitigate floods in the country. The health of poor men and women is affected by unsafe drinking water and poor sanitation service in the country whenever there are floods,” he said.
He said that there is a need for the development of skills and policies to guide the water and irrigation sectors.
At the same time, the World Bank vice president for Eastern and Southern Africa, Victoria Kwakwa said that almost three quarters of South Sudanese lack clean drinking water despite the abundance of this resource in the country.
“Over 6.6 million people lack access to safe drinking water. Sanitation is another core issue of concern for the dignity and well-being of millions of South Sudanese,” Victoria said.
The report also indicated that 8.2 million South Sudanese still practice open defecation. This, Kwakwa said, is causing contamination and a risk to surface water and unprotected wells.
On the other hand, South Sudan experiences frequent droughts, especially in the southeast and northeast. Flooding and a lack of pasture are some of the major contributors to inter-communal conflicts that have claimed over one million lives.
Seasonal flooding sustains livelihoods for about six million people living along the Nile and Sobat Rivers and the wider eastern and western plains.
The economic value of Sudd Wetland alone is estimated to be at least $3.2 billion.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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